How To Save Her Life
by NightWriter554
Summary: Miley's busy life is taking a toll on her friendship with Lilly, and when tragedy strikes, Miley realizes that she took her best friend for granted. In this story of loss, love, and living in the moment, one second chance can change everything. Liley.
1. Chapter 1: Promises

**(Please read!) A/N: Welcome to my fanfic! Thanks so much for checking it out. Just so you know this is the FIRST FANFIC I HAVE EVER WRITTEN. Please be nice; no flames. I really hope you enjoy it and please review!**

How To Save Her Life

Chapter 1: Promises

(Sunday- 11:34 am) (Miley's house) (April 12)

"And… perfect!" Miley said as she added the finishing touches of her eye shadow. She snapped the makeup shut and turned the lights off in her room before making her way downstairs. She quickly gazed out the window to the driveway. "C'mon! Hannah's already late!" she said, smoothing out her long blonde wig.

The sound of the telephone suddenly cut through the silence. Miley sighed and picked it up. "Hello?"

"Lilly landing in twenty!" an excited Lilly said.

"Lilly! Wait, hold on!" Miley said, but Lilly had already hung up. Miley put the phone down and automatically opened the door for her best friend's grand entrance. Sure enough, twenty seconds later, Lilly leaped through the entryway and stuck a perfect landing by the piano on her prized skateboard.

"Hey, Miley!" she said, hopping off her board and removing her helmet. "Check this out!" She proudly displayed the shiny gold medal that she wore around her neck.

"Whoa, where'd you get that?" Miley asked curiously.

"The competition yesterday. You know, at the skate park." Lilly's smile gradually faded. "The one you promised to go to…"

Miley suddenly remembered. "Oh sweet niblets… Lilly, I'm sorry. It totally slipped my mind."

"It's all right", Lilly said. "Don't worry about it. You're pretty busy being Hannah Montana and all. Speaking of which, why are you Hannah now?"

"Dakota's throwing a 'birthday extravaganza' for one of her friends and asked me to make an appearance." She looked out the window nervously. "It was so last minute that the limo's late. And my dad's flight back from Tennessee was delayed, so he's out of the picture until tomorrow."

"Oh", Lilly said, her eyes downcast. "I was hoping you were free today so we could do something."

At that moment, a limo pulled into the driveway. "Finally!" Miley said. "Look, Lilly, I've gotta go. I'll be back later and I_ promise_ we can hang out."

Miley sped out the door and locked it after Lilly followed her. Her long blonde wig danced in the soft sea breeze as she ran toward the limo.

"Bye, Miley!" Lilly said, waving. "Have fun at the…" But Miley had already slammed the door shut and the driver speedily maneuvered the limo out of the driveway.

Lilly lowered her hand. "… party."

She stood there alone, watching the limo take off toward the freeway.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

(Later that day)

"I'll be right back, everybody", Miley said as she hopped out of the limo and onto her driveway. "Just gotta get a few things."

The sun was sunk low in the sky, spelling the end of a beautiful day in Malibu. Miley ran up the walkway and jammed her house key into the front door lock. When she got inside, she hastily grabbed her purse and cell phone she had forgotten that morning. Just as she was locking the front door on her way out, a familiar voice called out to her.

"Hey Miley, you're back!" Lilly was jogging up the walkway. "How was the party?"

"Oh, hey Lilly", Miley said impatiently. "It was great."

"So, are you busy?"

"Um, yeah", Miley said. "I just came by for my purse and my phone. Some people from the party are checking out this club downtown and I wanted to tag along."

"Oh… okay", Lilly said, disheartened.

Miley could see the disappointment clouding her eyes. "Oh, Lilly… I'm", she began.

"Maybe some other time", Lilly said, turning to leave.

"Lilly", Miley said. She put her hands on her shoulders, a contrite smile on her face. "Tomorrow at seven", she said, her tone brightening. "After we get back from that concert in LA. We'll have a movie night, just you and me. I _promise_."

Lilly raised her eyes and a smile shone on her face. "That sounds great!"

"Good", Miley said. "Now, I gotta go, okay?"

Lilly nodded in reply.

"See you tomorrow!" Miley said as she ran back to the limo.

"See ya", Lilly said, waving.

When the limo had departed, Lilly walked home. Nightfall was quickly creeping up on the last hopeful beams of fading sunlight.


	2. Chapter 2: Forgotten

Chapter 2: Forgotten

(The next day)

Miley stepped backstage with a smile on her face, the joyous roar of a satisfied crowd still ringing in her ears. Her heart was racing from her big finale.

"Hannah Montana does it again!" Robbie Ray said, joining her backstage. "Honey, you were amazing out there!"

"Thanks, daddy", she said, breathless.

"Sure thing, bud. I s'pose you're tired of hearing this, but I'm proud of you."

"I know, daddy, thanks. Is Lil- I mean Lola around?"

"Yeah, I just saw her", he said. "She caught sight of the food and bolted, but she said she'd be right back."

"Hannaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" a squeaky, nasally voice said. Miley turned to see Traci running up to her. "Great performance! Loved that big finish."

"Thanks, Traci", Miley, or Hannah rather, said. "I just do what they tell me."

Traci giggled, her deviated septum pulling her voice up a few octaves. "Well, bravo! And do I have some news for you! Remember how we just happened to run into Brad and Angelina at that clue last night?"

"Yeah", Miley said. "How could I forget?"

"Well, because they thought you were such a great person at the club, they came to the concert! And- you're going to love this! - invited you to come to Hawaii this week!"

"Are you serious!?" Miley gasped.

"Totally serious! They said they're taking a huge group of lots of important people along with them in their private jet. And they invited you and one guest to come along!"

"Whoa… that's so nice of them!"

"Yeah", Traci said. "So nice of them to let you go and bring _one guest._ Just one guest…" A devious smile played on her lips, her eyes locked on Miley expectantly.

Miley smiled humorlessly. "Okay, Traci. You gave me the news, so you can be my guest."

"Yes!" Traci proclaimed. "You're a great friend, Hannah!"

"Well, I try", Miley said. But she suddenly remembered that her dad was standing behind her the whole time. "Uhh, Traci? Could you excuse me for a minute?"

"Sure", Traci said. "But hurry. You'd better start packing your bags. I heard them say they're taking off at seven, sharp from the first gate at the airport!" With that, she departed.

"So", Robbie Ray said. "You planning on getting permission from anybody, or are you just gonna hop on that jet?"

Miley sighed longingly. "Daddy, please! Can I go? I haven't had a break or gone on a trip in the longest time!" She looked up at him with the best puppy-dog eyes she could muster. "We have this whole week off of school anyway."

"Miles… this is so short-notice. You didn't even pack anything."

"I know, but I've got time", Miley said. "We can go home, get what I'll need, and be back with time to spare!"

Robbie Ray sighed, scratching his fake moustache.

"Don't forget, Hannah!" Traci said as she walked by. "Seven, sharp!"

"How long is this shindig gonna be?" Robbie Ray asked.

"Brad said they'll be landing home Sunday night", Traci said. "Five days of pampering and luxury!"

"Oooooooh, please!" Miley begged.

He sighed once more. "Well… all right. They're good people; I've met them."

"Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Miley said.

"See you at the airport, Hannah!" Traci sang. "Don't be late!"

"Don't worry, I'll be early!" Miley called to her excitedly as she left.

"Thanks, daddy", Miley said, giving him a bear hug.

"You're welcome, bud", he said, returning her embrace. "Now let's go home and get you packed."

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Once again, Miley found herself running up her walkway and jamming her house key into the front door lock. She flew through the door and threw her purse on the couch, not knowing that it was open and half her stuff spilled out of it when it landed.

"Geez, Miley", Robby Ray said as he came through the door. "You don't have to be there till seven. What's the rush?" But she was already upstairs, raiding her spinning carousel of clothes. She loaded her suitcase and gathered everything she was brining in record time.

"Okay, dad", Miley said, dragging her monster of a suitcase down the stairs. "Ready."

"You sure you got everything?" he asked as he put mustard on a sandwich.

"Yep, I'm good", she said, piling her stuff by the door. "Let's go!"

"Right now?" he said. "We practically just got here. It's not even quarter to five yet."

"Come on, dad. I said I'd be early!"

"Fine", he said impatiently. He wrapped up his sandwich. "I'll make it to-go."

"Thanks, dad", Miley said. She opened the door and he carried her massive suitcase out. She went to retrieve her purse to find half its content scattered on the couch. "Oops", she said, hastily gathering everything back up and running out the door. But not quite everything. Her cell phone had slid behind a pillow and was left behind.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

(Later that evening)

Lilly jogged up Miley's driveway with a smile on her face, a DVD in one hand and her pajamas in the other. She rang the doorbell and looked inside. There were no lights on in the entire house. Lilly's heart sank; no one was home. She looked at her watch. Seven minutes early; now six.

"Maybe she's just not home yet", Lilly reasoned to herself. She sat down by the door and waited for her best friend's return.

Every now and then, she heard threatening rumbles of thunder in the distance. They minutes dragged on, but Lilly stayed put. Almost a half hour passed when she called Miley's cell phone. When she got the voicemail, she hung up and texted her. But after fifteen minutes and a quick voicemail message with no reply, Lilly gave up trying to call her. She shut her flip phone disappointedly and looked up at the sullen gray sky.

It had been close to one hour since she arrived, and it was beginning to rain. Within minutes, the sky opened up and the rain came down in sheets. Lilly tried to wait it out under the thin roof above the front door; it didn't look like it was going to stop anytime soon. She looked into the dark house, wishing Miley would somehow appear and welcome her in. But she knew; her best friend had forgotten her again.

Lilly stepped out into the pouring rain, forlorn. She simply left the DVD and her pajamas on the doorstep. All alone, she made her way home, not caring that she was getting soaked to the skin, or that bright lightning and earsplitting thunder raged overhead.


	3. Chapter 3: Revelation

Chapter 3: Revelation

(6 days later: Sunday)(Miley's house)

"Thanks for the help!" Miley said to the limo driver she'd conned into carrying her luggage to the front door.

"You're welcome… Miss Montana", he said breathlessly, setting down her last massive bag.

"A little something for your trouble", Miley said, putting a generous tip in his hand.

He brightened at the sight of his reward. "Wow! Thanks, Miss Montana!" He pocketed the money. "You had fun on your trip, I assume?"

"I only wish I could have stayed longer", Miley said distantly. "But, hey, I have my own little paradise here in Malibu."

"Ahh, this is true", the driver said. "Thanks again."

"Sure. And thank you!"

She opened the front door. "I'm home!" She threw her wig off as soon as she passed the threshold. "Hey, dad! I need help with my bags!" The door to the back deck was cracked open and Miley could hear her dad talking on the phone outside.

As she approached to surprise him, she heard him talking in a different sort of voice. "No, I couldn't get in touch with her." He almost always talked in a more lively and booming tone, especially on the phone, but he sounded more distant and gloomy. "I couldn't do it over the phone even if I was able to. Yeah… I still don't know…" he stopped for a long moment. "…how I'm gonna do it." His voice was so shaky that it seemed he was quivering on the edge of weeping.

"Daddy?" Miley said, joining him on the deck.

He jumped slightly, taken off guard. Miley was a bit shocked at his appearance. His was haggard and worn out with a sad expression plastered to his face. "I gotta go Pearl", he said. "Miley's home. Yeah. God bless you too." He hung up.

"Daddy, what's wrong?" Miley asked, her stomach tightening with anxiety.

He didn't say a thing. Rather, he looked her straight in the eyes, his sorrow visibly deepening. A teardrop quivered in the corner of his eye.

"Daddy, what happened?"

He came closer and gathered her into his arms, holding her tenderly.

"Dad…" she said, automatically hugging back. "What's wrong?"

"Miley", he said. "We need to talk." He took her hand and led her inside. They silently sat on the couch. "I really don't know how to tell you this."

Miley felt her heart quicken. She couldn't remember a time he sounded so serious. "What is it?"

He took a deep breath and moved closer to her. "It's Lilly… she… she's dead…"

Silence. "What?"

"Lilly's… dead" he said, on the verge of tears. "I'm so sorry, bud." He took her hand.

Miley glance down. "No, sh…she's fine." She withdrew her hand and backed away from him. "I just saw…" she began, until she realized she hadn't seen Lilly for a week or so now.

"It happened on Thursday; three days ago", he said. "I couldn't get a hold of you. I… I'm so sorry, Miley." He was about to hug her again when she stood up, knocking her forgotten cell phone off the couch.

"No", Miley said. "Lilly's fine. I don't believe you." Her stomach churned sickeningly. She grabbed her phone and found a long list of unread text messages and voicemails.

"Miley, I know this is hard, but…" He couldn't find the word to go on.

But Miley wasn't even listening to him. She stabbed at the button that selected her earliest voicemail. Her heart skipped a beat when she heard Lilly's voice: "Hey, Miley. It's me." Her voice seemed so small. "It's about quarter to eight and I'm just wondering where you are… so… I'll be here when you get back. Call me if something came up. See you soon." Miley could barely hear the last part over the thunder approaching on Lilly's end. She stood completely still, the phone to her ear, hoping for more.

"Miley…" Robbie Ray said.

"She's fine. Look", Miley said, her voice involuntarily quickening (not to mention, her heart). "She sent me a voicemail. And four text messages."

"They must be more than three days old", her dad said. "You did leave your phone here, after all."

Miley was silent as she stared down at Lilly's name on the screen, reciting it over and over again in her head. _Lilly… Lilly… Lilly…_

"… and I can hardly imagine how you're feeling, Miley. Please, honey, let me help you. We'll get through this together."

_Lilly… Lilly… such a beautiful name._ She didn't even know her dad was talking to her. _Lilly… I can't believe I forgot about you._

"Miley, are you…" He stopped short. "Maybe you should get some rest."

Miley broke out of her stupor and suddenly saw Lilly's pajamas and DVD by the door. "I have to return these to her", she said, running over to them and picking them up. "I have to tell her I'm sorry."

"Miley, no!" Robbie Ray said as he stood up. "Don't go over there! They're still investigating. It's a crime scene."

She looked at him as if she'd just seen a ghost. She slowly shook her head, her mouth forming the beginning of "no", but not a sound passed her lips.

"It's about to storm any minute now anyway", he said. "It's late honey. You need some rest."

Miley didn't know what else to say. It was as if her mind had been wiped blank of every thought, every emotion. So, she walked up the stairs and readied herself for bed in a trance-like state. After she got out of the shower, she stood in her room with a towel wrapped around her and stared at her best friend's pajamas that lay on her bed. She picked them up and held them to her cheek. _Lilly… _she whispered. They smelled just like her. _Is it vanilla? Ocean breeze? Some sort of delicate, beautiful flower? No… something better: Lilly._

She pulled the soft, silky shirt over her head and stepped into the bottoms. She breathed in the beautiful scent that enveloped her. It was so familiar, she wouldn't have been surprised if Lilly came out of nowhere and hugged her, giggling about one of the random things they talked about. She wrapped her arms around herself, pulling the aroma to her center.

It was ten minutes to midnight when Miley flopped down on her bed. Her soft, steady breathing synchronized with the quiet rain that drummed on the roof; the only sounds that could be heard and, to Miley, the only sounds in the world. As she lay in the inky darkness of her room, she got lost in her own mind: confusion, disbelief, uncertainty, guilt. But yet, she felt nothing, almost as if she were experiencing the onset of a coma she knew was coming. In a strange sort of way, it was as if she were watching a movie she'd seen many time before; she does get into it, but knows how it will end: happily. She pulled Lilly's shirt up and breathed it in again. Her sent was so present. So alive. Miley felt her heart fall into a somnolent, satisfied calmness as Lilly's scent swathed her. _Lilly… I know you're all right,_ she thought as she curled into a ball. Within minutes, she gave into her sleepiness, they silky shirt bunched up and resting near her face in soft ruffles.


	4. Chapter 4: Slipping Away

Chapter 4: Slipping Away

Miley awoke calmly and saw her clock glowing 6:43 am. She sat up and stretched. Lilly's pajama shirt was still bunched up near her chin. She pulled it back down, noticing that the scent was beginning to fade. Either that or she was just so used to it. As she took off her best friend's pajamas, she decided that she would return them after school. It really wasn't a big deal at all; they shared clothes all the time. Miley yawned and opened her closet. She decided to skip her morning shower, and not just because she had taken one last night.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

By the time Miley got downstairs, it was 7:26. When she walked into the kitchen, she saw her dad waiting for her at the table, holding his head in his hands.

"Morning, daddy", Miley said.

He immediately looked up. "Oh. Morning, bud." He had obviously been thinking deeply about something. His eyes were a bit red and he had dark, heavy semicircles below them. "You're up awful early."

"Um, yeah. It is Monday", Miley said as she picked up her cell phone to put into her purse. She automatically checked her text messages: all were from Lilly, sent days ago. When Miley looked at the name under "sender", she felt like someone shoved a tiny needle into her heart and wiggled it around.

Robbie Ray gave her a sorrowful look. "Miley, forget about school today. There's no way I'd make you go."

She looked at him, confusion, whether fake or real she did not know, taking over her features. "But why?"

She could tell he caught the small flicker of fear overshadowing her voice, but she quickly chased it away.

"I need to go today", she said shakily. "I need to see Lilly." Saying her name made the imaginary needle twist a little more.

Never before had her dad looked so crushed, except maybe when he delivered the news about Miley's mom, years ago. "Miley… you're not going to see her there."

Out of nowhere, Miley felt tears blurring her vision. Her heart was slamming against her ribs. She turned away and picked up her schoolbag. "I have to go catch the bus."

"Miley!" he said. "Miley, hold on." But she was already out the door as the bus approached. She was gone in seconds.

"God Almighty", he mumbled. "How am I supposed to do this?" He banged his fist on the table and went upstairs to get dressed.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley walked through the school doors and headed straight to Lilly's locker, not making eye contact with anyone. There was an unmistakable quiet throughout the halls. Usually, Mondays began a little quieter than any other day, since most of the students were tired out from the weekend, and other were just too bored or hung over to say much at all. But today, it was so quiet that it was almost eerie. As she made her way upstairs, Miley could definitely feel eyes on her. When she passed by, some people would quiet down and glance at her for a few seconds before turning back to their conversations.

Miley felt a wave of nausea when she reached Lilly's locker and didn't see her there. She stood there for a few minutes, feeling like a lost child in the heart of a big city. The bell rang; no Lilly. She nervously walked away, glancing back over her shoulder every few steps.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley walked into her first class, three minutes late. She thought she was in for it; the teacher was always pretty strict on latecomers. But when she opened the door, she caught sight of the guidance counselor addressing the class. All eyes turned to her as she stepped through the door and took her seat, letting her books lay in a disarrayed pile beneath her desk. Miley could have sworn that ten minutes have gone by until the class stopped staring at her and whispering amongst themselves. She ignored every one of them; her eyes were fixed upon the empty seat in front of her. She tuned out the guidance counselor's calm, sympathetic words.

_Lilly… _Miley thought. _C'mon, Lilly. You've gotta be here._ Her heart pounded in her ears, making it even easier to ignore the counselor. _Lilly couldn't have died._ When the word "died" passed through her mind, she felt a stinging surge crawl down her spine. _There's no way. How could someone like her die? No one around here dies this young. Maybe she's just sick, or…_

"… truly is among the greatest tragedies affecting our school", the counselor said. "I invite anyone who feels like they need to talk to come to my office any time." The counselor looked at Miley.

… _I bet she's at home, or even out skateboarding. That's right. She deserves a day off. _Miley felt the counselor looking down at her. She looked up, expressionless.

"Please", she said to everyone, but it was obvious her speech was directed toward Miley. "Don't hesitate. We can help."

Miley felt a flicker of anger ignite within her. She stood up. "No!" she said, almost yelling. "Everything's fine. Nothing happened." She didn't quite realize the sick, disbelieving smile spreading across her face.

"I really can help you", the counselor said, her voice still perfectly serene. "I just need you to let me."

"No!" Miley shouted. "I won't. Nothing happened! She's fine, she's…" The tears were coming now. She tried to swallow her emotions, but she couldn't take it anymore. "SHE'S NOT DEAD!" Miley screamed. With that, she ran out of the room and started sprinting down the empty hallway.

"Good morning, students and staff", a glum voice said over the PA system. "This is Dr. Ross speaking. You are probably all aware of the tragedy that recently took place involving one of our valued students." The principal's voice droned through the stairwell that Miley was running down. "Lillian Truscott, grade 10, died four days ago. I, along with all of our staff, offer our heartfelt sympathy to her family, friends, and all of you students who have come to know her. With such a tragedy in our midst, we all must…"

Miley charged through the door and ran out into the school parking lot. She sprinted through the maze of parked cars and got off school property as fast as she could. It wasn't until she reached the road did she slow down. Her brain swam about in her head as her heart slammed a frenzied rhythm through her body. When she finally stopped, she realized that tears were spilling down her face. She looked back at the school and knew that no one had followed her. In a strange way, she almost hoped that someone would have seen her bolt out the doors. Even more than that, she wished that someone would appear and tell her none of it was true, or maybe, that it was all just a dream. But more than any of those hopes, she wanted Lilly, her best friend in the entire world. Lilly, the one she shared her every secret with. Lilly, the one who was always there for her. Lilly, the one she blew off four times in three days and broke three promises along with that.

Miley's heart plunged into her stomach under the crushing weight of her guilt. She picked herself up as best she could, wiping away her tears. _I have to make it up to her,_ she thought. _Right now._

She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and dialed Lilly's number as fast as she could. It rang once. "Please, Lilly…" she begged. "Pick up, pick up." It rang twice. Three times. Four times. "C'mon, Lilly… please…oh, God… please." Five times.

"Hey, this is Lilly", Lilly's voice said brightly.

"LILLY!" Miley yelled. "Where are-"

"I'm not here right now, so leave me a message!"

Miley groaned. She truly believed she had reached Lilly. When she heard the beep, she said, "Uh, hey, Lilly. It's Miley." Her voice cracked a little. "I… really need to talk to you. The second you get this, please call me. I'm gonna try texting you." She hung up and send her a text message reading, "Where r u? Plz call me asap." She impatiently shoved her phone back into her pocket and began walking down the side of the road. Right away, she knew where to start looking for Lilly.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley never realized how far away the skate park actually was until now. But she knew Lilly never had a problem getting there almost every day. She'd always try to take the road instead of playing it safe and taking the detour. When she did, she'd chase the trucks and see how many surprised glances she'd get.

Miley hopped the low fence around the park and looked around. No one, not a single person, was there. She walked through slowly, checking all of Lilly's favorite places and calling out for her. She sat down on a half-pipe near the road, watching the cars rush by. Once again, she called Lilly, chagrined when she received the voicemail greeting. She sat there, praying that Lilly would miraculously show up, chasing a big rig. Miley swore she jumped at least three feet into the air when her phone rang. But when she saw her dad's caller ID on the screen, she ignored it. There was only one person she would answer for.

After waiting for a few minutes, she began scrolling through all of the pictures saved on her phone, pausing for a few minutes when she reached ones with Lilly. She never put too much thought into Lilly's beauty, but in those moments, she couldn't stop staring, enraptured by it. She watched a video that she and Lilly had made of their dramatic impressions of Amber and Ashley from school. By the end of it, the two of them were falling all over each other, laughing uncontrollably on the floor. Miley smiled and played it again, then again. After the fifth time, she lost count.

The minutes rushed by, just like the cars flying down the road, not one of them pausing to notice the girl sitting all alone, lost in her memories.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley found herself wandering slowly down the coastline, the quiet waves lazily beating upon her feet as she walked along. She was headed toward home, not knowing what else to do, where else to look. Hopelessness was beginning to settle into the pit of her stomach. She called Lilly again, just to hear the sound of her voice. She lost count of how many times she called, just as she had lost count of how many times she had watched the video earlier. Once again, her dad tried to call her again, but she refused to answer. Every so often, Miley would pass by a few beachgoers, but even so, she never felt so alone in her entire life. A profound, unreachable emptiness was beginning to creep into her, like a penetrating opiate within her emotions.

Almost three hours passed by when Miley's house came into view, which meant Lilly's wasn't far. _Almost there,_ she thought, beginning to run. _She's got to be there._ When she was practically there, she began slowing down. She squinted in the bright sunlight, suddenly noticing something fencing off the beach behind Lilly's house. As she neared the house, she saw that there were thin strips of yellow stretching from the back door and almost down to the water.

Miley slowly approached it and took the yellow tape in her hand. It read, "Crime Scene Do No Enter."


	5. Chapter 5: Proof

**A/N: Oh my gosh! I can't believe how many of you are actually reading this :) I am so appreciative of all the reviews! Thanks to everyone who is avidly reading this, especially you, Everhart13! Just a little warning: if you thought the last chapter was sad, the next two chapters are really depressing (A lot of people who've read my writing do say that's my specialty -evil laugh-). I know a lot of you are sad about Lilly dying (who wouldn't be!!-sniffles-) It was extremely hard, painful even, for me to do that, especially since she's my favorite character. But it is essential to the depth of the story and the theme. Even if you're not happy about what happened to Lilly, I urge you to read on! This story's all about second chances and, of course, Liley romance!! And I'm all about happy endings…**

Chapter 5: Proof

"Miley!" a voice shouted from behind her.

Robby Ray was flying down the stairs that led up to the street. "Miley, stay outta there!" he said, slowing to a stop beside her. "C'mon, you shouldn't be here."

Miley felt her knees buckling beneath her and a wave of sickness pulse through her entire body. She was falling, but her dad quickly caught her before she hit the ground.

"I got you, Miley", he said gently. "It's all right."

Even as the waves beat upon the sand behind them and a breeze swept over the shoreline, Miley couldn't hear a thing. She barely realized that her dad was carrying her up the stairs to the back porch, nor did she realize that he stepped through the door and let her down on the couch.

"Miley, are you all right?" he asked, not much above a whisper. "Do you wanna talk?"

His question didn't register at all. "What was…" her voice cracked; she hadn't spoken for hours. "What was that? Why was that there?"

He looked down. "Miley… that's where it happened."

_What happened,_ Miley thought desperately. _Where Lilly was… _She bit her lip so hard, it bled. _No… Lilly's fine. It's impossible that she wouldn't be, right?_ Her heart was racing. Her own subconscious was beginning to disagree with her.

"It's restricted", her dad said. "They haven't finished investigating. But honey, I don't want you thinking about that." He paused for a long moment. "The viewing… it's at five tonight."

Miley was about to scream at the top of her lungs when she realized something. "Okay", she responded calmly.

She could see the obvious surprise on his face. He nodded slowly. "Anything you wanna do in particular, Mile? I'm here for you." His expression quickly gave away that he knew the reality of the situation hadn't hit her yet.

"I, uh", Miley began. "I think I'll take a walk. I sort of want some time alone."

"Well, all right", he said, unaware that she had already wandered around for about hours four hours that day. "If that's what you want, honey."

She nodded, her face empty, her eyes downcast. After closing the door behind her, she made her way onto the street, glancing backward to make sure no one following her.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley could tell no one was home just by looking in the dark window. Heather Truscott's car wasn't in the garage. She wasn't surprised when she found that all the doors were locked, but she had a plan. More often than not, Lilly kept her bedroom window unlocked and she knew from experience it was pretty easy to open. So, she reached the highest point of the back deck and carefully climbed the flowery vines that almost reached the corner of the roof; Lilly's room was on the way up. Miley had once done the same thing to "break" Lilly out of her room when she was grounded one night. When Miley got up high enough, she pushed up the screen and wrenched the window open. She pulled herself through, making an awkward landing.

This was it: her final proof. If Lilly wasn't there, she was truly gone. Miley felt these words stinging through her subconscious, even though her mind screamed to her that Lilly was fine, over and over again. Miley slowly looked around her best friend's room, a room she knew so well. All was silent; she partially partially knew even before she climbed through the window that Lilly wouldn't be there. But now, she knew for sure. No more comforting lies. No more false assumptions. Lilly was dead. And as Miley stood in the silence of Lilly's room, she knew she had to be dreaming, and it had to be over soon.

She lay back on Lilly's bed and stared up at the ceiling, the numbness deep in the pit of her stomach freezing over and becoming like frigid, piercing icicles. _It's got to be over soon,_ Miley thought. She pinched her arm so hard, she cut through the skin. A single drop of blood trickled down her arm. Though she could feel the pain, a strange sedation was melting into her. She didn't notice the hours slipping by as she tried to sleep in hope of fully waking up.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley barely even knew that she was awake until she was halfway down the stairs in Lilly's house. Her head was beginning to pound and quick, nettlesome pangs of nausea stabbed through her stomach. Something was whispering through her mind, something that said her best friend was dead. She couldn't bear it; she had to wake up.

She threw the door open and ran out, not bothering to check if anyone had seen her. But she didn't even make it halfway home when she fell to her knees on the side of the road. With her head in her hands, she fought to regain control of her racing pulse and hyperventilation. Tears were blurring her vision, making it hard to notice her dad's car pull up beside her.

Robby Ray jumped out of his car. "Miley!" he yelled worriedly, kneeling down beside her and putting a strong arm around her shoulders. "Aw, Miley…" He held her close as she curled up in his arms.

After I long moment, he helped her to her feet and led her to the passenger's seat, closing the door behind her. When he got back into the driver's seat, he hesitated before putting the car in drive.

"Honey, you want me to take you home?" her dad asked. "If it'd be easier to skip the viewing, I'd be more than happy to take you home now."

Miley wiped her tearful eyes. "I need to… I mean, I…" She sniffled, wiping away more tears. "I want… to go. I…" She couldn't find the right words to finish. "I need to… see her." She knew she couldn't bring herself to say "Lilly."

"Are you sure, Miley?" her dad asked softly.

She nodded, gulping down another round of tears.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

The funeral home was close by, so they arrived within a few minutes. It was a very beautiful home, paradoxically bright and gaudy in appearance, even beneath the overcast skies. The two of them came through the door and into the crowded main room. There were people from wall to wall, but an unnatural quiet hung over everything, as if everyone was afraid to raise their voice above a whisper. The air felt still and stuffy and the scent of fresh flowers that hung over the room somehow made Miley feel sicker. The only thing that was missing was a dirge.

"I'm gonna look for Heather", Robby Ray said.

For a moment, Miley almost said, "I'll go find Lilly" as if they were at some sort of party instead of a viewing.

She began to follow her dad as he mingled through the tight-packed space, but she stopped in her tracks when she saw to open casket at the head of the room. Miley felt her heart thudding in her ears at the sight of it. It was surrounded by beautiful arrangements of colorful flowers. She stood there, a good distance from it, waiting to be the only one to approach. When she was, she took a deep breath and crept toward it, stumbling and almost falling on her way. But, she soon managed to make it to the side of the casket.

With a deep breath filling her lungs, Miley looked inside. There, lying perfectly still was Lilly Truscott.


	6. Chapter 6: Breakdown

Chapter 6: Breakdown

Lilly lay in eternal sleep, surrounded by soft, crimson rose petals. She was dressed in a gorgeous white dress and her hair was straight and silky, with two thin braids on each side. They rested on small, wavy portions of her hair. She looked absolutely perfect, but her skin was so pale, so deathly white. For a strange, almost sick moment, Miley was happy to see her again, but that didn't last very long. Her comforting delusions were finally gone, after dissolving away, piece by piece, since she'd received the news. The truth she had denied all along was now all too real.

She reached down and touched Lilly's hand. The moment her fingers met Lilly's pale skin, a floodgate seemed to swing open in her heart, unable to hold back the sea of panic behind it any longer. And now, sheer, utter panic began flowing through her in emotional torrents. She touched Lilly's face, feeling her cold lips on her skin. Her hand trembled as she slowly withdrew it. A scream began to build in her lungs and travel up, only to freeze solid in her throat. She couldn't breathe. She felt like the tiny needle that had poked at her heart when she thought of Lilly had turned into a sword, tearing a gaping hole in her chest.

Miley stumbled backward and fell to the floor. Before anyone could help her to her feet, she jumped up and tried with all her strength to get her head back on straight. She recklessly lurched through the thick crowd of mourners. When she found the door, she charged through it and started running, just as she had earlier that day at school. She looked back and saw the concerned glances people shot toward her and the worried whispers on their lips.

Her bleeding heart was drowning in the panic that submerged her being as it beat quickly, severely, painfully. As she ran away on the sidewalk, she felt like the ground was being pulled out from underneath her. She was falling away.

_How is this possible?_ She screamed in her head as she struggled to breathe with frozen screams still trapped in her throat. _Lilly… Lilly… no… _She felt the sword rhythmically plunge through her drowning heart every time the name rang through her mind.

She took off, full speed, trying so hard to suppress the pain that crushed her. The image of Lilly's pale and lifeless face flashed through her mind's eye, twisting the imaginary blade. The memory of her coldness made the flooding panic inside her drop below freezing. She took sharp, uneven breaths as she ran onward, chocking on the unstoppable tears spilling down her face. She instinctively ran toward home, tripping three times on the sidewalk and barely reacting fast enough to catch herself. But by the fourth time, she found herself face down on the cement.

"…must be one of the cruelest cases of my career", a voice said nearby.

Miley slowly lifted her head off the ground. Her stomach practically fell into her butt when she saw that she was right in front of Lilly's house. The police and detective's cars were parked in the driveway. She crawled over to the police car and crouched behind it, listening in to the conversation between the police man and detective who were talking on the front porch.

"It's just hard to fathom stuff like this", the detective said, his voice weighed down with chagrin.

"Believe me, I know", the policeman said. "We're almost sure the suspect is guilty. This guy's sick."

The detective sighed and picked up his briefcase.

"Has a conclusion been reached?" the policeman asked.

The detective nodded. "There was no doubt a struggle; the evidence proves that. She was violently raped, and shot three times: once bullet pierced her heart, one hit her shoulder, and one hit her side."

Miley felt like she was going to puke.

"We're pretty sure the killer had no former association with her. My conclusion: the poor girl was in the path of a madman."

Miley couldn't bear another word. She got up and started running, trying to ignore the fact that her legs felt like gelatin. This time she didn't look back and missed the policeman and detective's concerned gazes on her when she stumbled out from behind the police car.

When she got home, she immediately dashed around the side of the house and took the stairs up to the deck two at a time, practically falling over every other once. She fell to her knees when she reached the top, gripping the deck railing, her knuckles a ghostly white. She looked through the wooden posts beneath the railing, out toward the gray-green ocean. Her breathing was out of control as her hands began to slide down the railing. The frozen screams in her throat melted and turned to stinging, gelid air. More tears came when she closed her eyes. And then, her hands hit the deck floor and she screamed with all her strength toward the ocean.

Her scream traveled over the silent sand and lazy waves that spilled over the coast, tearing through the somnolence of the overcast afternoon. She slammed her fists on the floor, breathing in and screaming into the gloomy skies. She was breaking down completely, screaming and sobbing.

Miley was doubled over in grief, wrapping her arms around herself as if afraid that the ghost of her mangled heart would break through her ribcage. As the minutes snuck by, she began to feeling the onset of burning guilt.

"Why?" she screamed tearfully, not bothering to keep her voice down in the least bit. "Why did I have to break my promises? If only I could see her again…" She breathed shakily, her raw throat trembling. "If only I had known. Lilly… oh, Lilly!"

Miley crawled across the deck and onto the roof, the place she almost always sat when she was sad; or, in this case, crushed, torn, lamenting. The hours seemed like days as she mourned on the roof. She screamed and sobbed and tried to remember to breathe. More than anything, she cried in agony, hugging herself to make sure she wouldn't physically fall apart; she was convinced it would happen any minute, no, any second now. The words of the detective rang in her ears: struggle, raped, shot. She couldn't help but imagine what it was like for Lilly. Horrid images were flashing across her mind, and she screamed, forcing them as far away as possible.

But as the unbearable hours passed, Miley gathered whatever strength was left in her to fight back the sobs and escape to her fondest memories of Lilly. Time began to fly as she escaped to the past and indulged in the moments they shared; the moments she now realized she had taken for granted. Miley felt a delicate smile pull at the corner of her lips as she thought of Lilly: her carefree attitude, her love for the pure and simple, her animated yet wistful charm, her cute face, her silky blonde hair, her… everything.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Dusk was upon her when Miley came out of her stupor. Her cheeks were tear-stained and her eyes and nose were rheumy. The sun was sunk low in the sky, seeming to extinguish as it dipped below the view of the ocean. She looked up into the endless sky and saw stars beginning to show. The clouds had moved out.

Miley felt absolutely wiped out in every way. The pain of reality came crashing back in, bringing a heavy guilt that weighed down her empty stomach. She begged herself not to cry again, but it was a lost cause. The tears began falling again, but she managed to keep her pained whimpers low and quiet.

"If only I would have been here…" she whispered. "If only I would have been true to her… maybe things would have turned out different. I just wish…"

Profound guilt pressed down on her. As she stared into the darkening sky, something caught her eye. There, traversing the highest reaches of the heavens, was a brilliant shooting star. Its cosmic light lifted Miley's spirit a little.

Without a second thought, Miley said. "I just wish I could go back, before I blew Lilly off for that party… I want to make it up to her… more than anything."

She could have sworn that the star winked at her before dancing off out of sight. When it was gone, she sighed and wiped her tears, her effort proven to be in vain moments later when more came. By then, she was beginning to lose track of what was going on. She lay back on the slanted roof and tried to calm down. Night closed in on her as she fell into stupor and, here and there, fitful sleep.


	7. Chapter 7: Awake

Chapter 7: Awake

It wasn't until Miley was fully awake, and out of one of the many trances she'd found herself over the painful hours past, did she realize something was different. She felt a soft surface beneath her, rather than the hard roof. The sounds of the wind and the waves were gone, replaced by uninterrupted silence. Out of curiosity, she opened her eyes, finding herself in her bedroom with the gentle morning sunlight creeping through her window. All of her bedding was bunched up at the foot of her bed, obviously kicked off during the night.

_Daddy_, she thought, knowing he must have found her asleep on the roof and brought her to her room. The clock showed 8:55 am, but Miley didn't even bother checking it. Her heart immediately went out to Lilly. The tears snuck up on her this time, and before she knew it, she had to put a lot of effort into staying quiet enough for her dad not to hear.

After a while, she sat up and ran her fingers through her hair, catching sight of her cell phone on her nightstand. She cocked her head, swearing that she hadn't put it there. Without a moment's hesitation, she picked it up and dialed Lilly's number. Her shattered heart crawled higher and higher at the sound of each ring, still somehow holding on to the hope that Lilly would answer it.

"Hey, this is Lilly", the bright recoding of Lilly's voice said. The sound of her voice made Miley practically become hysterical. "I'm not here right now, so leave me a message!"

When she heard the beep, Miley hung up and redialed. She did this six times, more zealously each time. By the seventh beep, Miley started talking.

"Um, hey, Lilly", she began, trying to push her heart out of her throat and back where it belonged. "I just… I just wanted to apologize… for going back on my word." Somewhere in her mind, she heard a voice telling her she was wasting her time and beginning to obsess by doing this. "I really wish I could see you right now… you don't know how much I miss you. I hope you're happy where you are. I know you must be. I'd… give anything to see you and hear your voice again." She could feel the onslaught of more tears, and fought to make her words come out clearly.

"Lilly, you mean so much to me." Her voice was growing more and more passionate. "I don't know what I'm gonna do without you. You've always been there for me and I should have been there for you… I've been a real bitch, Lilly…" She paused involuntarily, chocking up. "I'm so sorry! You're more important than any stupid party or gig or trip, and I should have thought about that! Lilly, I hope you can forgive me. I love you, Lilly… goodbye… I love you." With that, she hung up and put her cell phone back on her nightstand. After saying all that, Miley felt just a little bit better.

For a while after that, Miley collapsed back on her bed and stared into space. She gave up on sleeping relatively quickly. All she could do was think about Lilly; to cry over her mostly. The more she thought of her, the more she wept, but she didn't want to phase out the sorrow. To her, any beautiful thought of Lilly outweighed the pain that came crashing through seconds later.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

At about 10:45, Miley's cell phone rang. With an impatient groan, she checked the caller ID. The number wasn't familiar to her so she decided against answering it. Her dad had made sure that no one would be crowding up the "Hannah Line" on weekday mornings because of school, so she had an out. She knew it wasn't any friends or family, so she didn't feel like she had to answer it. And, in the state she was now, she didn't feel much like talking.

Miley had played with the idea of moping around in bed all day, but she knew that would make her dad worry even more. Along with that, it would make it even harder to face him and actually talk. She rolled out of bed and got in the shower. The hot water that rained down on her face was comforting; it hid the tears. It took her a lot longer than necessary to get ready for the day.

In time, Miley made it downstairs. She expected to see her dad at the table waiting for her or watching TV, but he was nowhere to be found. She looked out on the deck and in his room, but she couldn't find him anywhere. _Must have gone out jogging,_ she thought.

Before she had time to think of what to do next, the phone rang. She groaned again, not wanting to talk to anyone. But since it wasn't the "Hannah Line", she felt obligated to answer it. Without even looking at the caller ID, she picked up the phone.

"Hello?" she said.

"Lilly landing in twenty!"

Miley's heart stopped. "W… what?"

Silence. They had hung up.

"Hello!?" Miley said frantically.

No answer.

She slammed the phone down, horrified. _Is someone playing a joke on me? _she thought, recoiling from the phone as if it were trying to bite her. Her heart restarted, slamming like a bass drum, and her mind whirled around in bewilderment. She knew that was Lilly's voice; knew without the slightest hint of doubt.

"It couldn't have been…" she stammered. "Lilly's gone… I saw her…" She grabbed the phone and looked at the caller ID review list. There, at the very top of the list, was Lilly's cell phone number. She practically dropped the phone, concluding that she was delusional and hearing things. But seconds later, she heard a different sort of noise.

She heard something skidding to a stop outside, accompanied by what sounded like a "Whoa!" and a thud against the door. Miley swore she almost hit the ceiling by how high she jumped. A voice rang through her head, screaming that she was going insane. But everything that raged through her sore head was silenced by an impatient knock on the door. She could feel her pulse race into a frenzy as she approached the door. For a minute, she was frozen in place staring at the door. But there was another knock, louder this time, which shocked her mind back into overdrive. She slowly pushed down the door handle and pulled the door open.

There, standing on the front porch with one foot on her skateboard, was Lilly Truscott.

"Geez, Miley!" Lilly said, playfully. "I thought we had this whole door-opening thing down!" She rubbed her left shoulder, mouthing "Ow". "I had a good one in store for you too."

Miley thought she was going to faint.

"So, is everything okay?" Lilly asked, concerned. "I got your message when I was heading out and you sounded kinda…"

"Lilly?" Miley interrupted in a loud, trembling gasp.

"Yeah?" Lilly asked, confused.

Miley's voice froze in her throat. She held on to the conclusion that she was going insane, or even dreaming. She bit down on her lip, trying to figure out if she was still asleep. But as she stood there, feet away from her best friend in the world, she knew she was awake. Fully awake.

"LILLY!" she screamed. She threw her arms around Lilly and hugged her as tight as she could.

Lilly drew in a surprised breath, chocking a little from Miley's crushing hug.

"Oof! Miley?" Lilly gasped. "What's with the…"

"YOU'RE ALIVE!!" Miley shouted, nestling her head down into Lilly's neck.

Lilly fell silent, but giggled nervously a moment later, returning Miley's embrace. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Miley slowly pulled away, staring at her.

"Umm… should I be worried?" Lilly asked as Miley locked her eyes on her.

Miley smiled with tears in her eyes, and softly touched Lilly's face.

Lilly blushed, obviously not knowing how to react. But she didn't have to; Miley quickly pulled her into another tight hug.

"Umm, Miley?" Lilly asked after a minute in which Miley refused to let her go. "Are you okay?" She noticed a tear drip onto her neck. "Why are you crying? And what was that voicemail you sent me this morning all about?"

Her questions barely registered to Miley; she was in absolute euphoria. A flood of ecstasy seemed to heal her mangled heart and replenish her restless mind.

"Hellooooo?" Lilly said as she wiggled loose of Miley's never-ending hug. "Earth to Miley! Can you hear me?"

_It was a dream, _Miley said. _Was it? It had to be…_

"Miiiiley?" Lilly said, giving her shoulders a friendly shake.

"Lilly, I…" Miley began. "I had the most horrible dream…"

"Dream?"

"Yeah… you were dead. Someone killed you, and I… freaked out. I denied it, but it was true and… it was so real. I even saw you… at your viewing."

Lilly looked at her with fake tragedy. "I was dead?"

Miley nodded.

"Well… that sucks", Lilly said with an animated expression. "Is that what the whole message you left on my phone was about?"

"Oh, yeah", Miley said. "I woke up this morning and thought you were gone and I just… did it."

Lilly nodded slowly. "Well… okay. I thought maybe you were about to tell me you were moving to the other side of the world or something and we'd never see each other again."

"Nope. Ain't gonna happen", Miley said, a huge smile on her face. She couldn't help it; she grabbed Lilly and hugged her again.

"Wow, Miley", Lilly said, almost laughing. "I've never seen you so clingy."

"What?" Miley said, putting her cheek against Lilly's. "A girl can't hug her best friend in the world without getting arrested?"

Lilly laughed softly. "Well, all right." She hugged back. "Since the police aren't around", she added with comical wistfulness.

After a long moment, Lilly towed Miley inside.

"Now that we're all warm and fuzzy, you gotta see this", Lilly said. She removed a shiny gold medal that hung around her neck and held it up for Miley to see.

"Whoa", Miley said. "Where'd you get that?"

"The competition yesterday. You know, at the skate park." Lilly's smile gradually faded. "The one you promised to go to…"

"… huh?"

"Don't you remember at all?" Lilly asked.

"You mean another one?" Miley asked, confused.

"If you mean in addition to the one last year, then yeah", Lilly said.

"Wait, weren't you just in one of those like, a few days ago? I remember you had a gold medal just like that and you came over here to show me. Then I had to leave for that party Dakota was throwing."

Lilly shook her head, baffled. "That doesn't sound familiar at all. Are you sure we're thinking of the same thing?"

"Well… then I came home and told you we'd have a movie night the next day. Then I went to Hawaii… and when I came back… and my dad… I saw your pajamas and slept in them… couldn't believe…"

"Look, Miley, I don't want to split hairs", Lilly said. "It's no big deal. I know you're busy a lot and there will be other competitions."

Miley forehead creased in surprised confusion. _Was that a dream too? It couldn't have been, _she thought. "Lilly, I'm sorry. I should have made it."

"Don't worry about it", Lilly said. "Besides, I can show you my moves any time."

Miley smiled, even though she was at a loss for words. The dream clawed at the edges of her mind. She couldn't understand the fact that the skate competition in it never happened, not to mention her dad's trip to Nashville, Dakota's party, Hawaii… She knew she had lived through all of that.

_That must have been one long dream,_ Miley thought, disbelieving. _There's no way all of that never happened…_

"So, are you busy today?" Lilly asked, breaking her concentration.

"Uhh", Miley said. "To be honest, I have no clue."

"Well, doesn't look like you are now", Lilly said, her voice as bright as sunshine. "Could I hang here for a while?"

"Sure", Miley said. "I need some company in this empty house."

"Where's your dad and Jackson?" Lilly wondered.

"Jackson went to that camp Oliver's at and dad… he went out for some reason. Who knows?"

"Hm. Okay!" Lilly said, hopping on the couch.

Miley sat down beside her and suddenly noticed her hair. It was straight with wavy sections and two little braids. An alarming coldness settled into Miley. Lilly's hair was styled almost the same way for the viewing she remembered so vividly. The memories flooded in, overlapping and entwining: the low murmurs sneaking about the mourners; the cloying scent of fresh flowers; the crimson rose pedals; Lilly's cold lips. Obvious panic must have shown on Miley's face.

"Miley, what's wrong?" Lilly asked. Her clear blue eyes searched Miley's, full of worry.

Miley realized she forgot to breathe. She inhaled sharply, as if surfacing from a high dive. The present reality was beginning to piece itself back together.

"Miley, are you okay?" Lilly asked, rubbing her best friend's shoulder softly.

"Uh…" Miley said, swallowing. "Fine. I'm good."

"Are you sure? Maybe you're getting sick or something."

"No, no, no", Miley said quickly. "Don't worry. I'm just… just really hungry." Of course, she had fabricated that excuse, but she quickly realized everything she said was true when her stomach growled. "I'm starving. Let's eat!"

"Sounds good!" Lilly said. She jumped up and beat Miley to the kitchen.

Before Miley followed, she noticed a new message on the answering machine. She nonchalantly pressed the play button and headed for the fridge. But when she heard her dad's voice on it, she stopped in her tracks.

"Hey honey, it's me", he said. "I figured you wouldn't be awake yet. Just wanted to let you know my dang flight's been delayed and I won't be coming home till tomorrow morning." There was obvious annoyance clouding his voice. "Hope everything's all right. Call if you need. Love you, bud."

Miley stared at the answering machine, dumbfounded. After a long moment of listening to Lilly crumple up a wrapper, she blurted out, "Where the heck's my dad?"

Lilly cocked her head in thought. "Oh!" she said, half a pop-tart stuffed in her mouth. "Didn't he go to Tennessee for some sort of boring convention you refused to go to?"

"What? That was last week… wasn't it?" Miley thought back to the day before he got home from the same trip. _That was the same day as Dakota's party, _she thought. She even remembered that he called that morning to tell her about the delay around 7:00. _That was the same day Lilly showed me her medal, too. _She looked over and saw it still sitting on the coffee table where Lilly left it. With her mind reeling in confusion, Miley checked the time and date of her dad's message: Sunday April 12 -7:03 am.

"Lilly, what's the date today?" Miley asked, not taking her eyes off the answering machine.

"Uhh, the 12th, I think", Lilly said as she raided the fridge.

Miley was absolutely speechless. It seemed like she had dreamt up the entire week, woke up, and all of it was coming true. She pushed the thought out of her head, knowing it was impossible.

"Hey, Miley?" Lilly asked happily. "Do you have any waffles or something like that?"

"Um", Miley said, her mind lurching through a labyrinth. "Yeah, sure."

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley had already devoured both her waffles before Lilly even got through half of one.

"Whoa, Miley", Lilly said. "You're fast!"

Miley nodded, half a smile on her lips. The whole situation still left her baffled, but she almost just wanted to let it go. It suddenly reminded her of the time when she had cheated death, being narrowly missed by a lightning bolt. When she was unconscious she had a dream that taught her a lesson and warned her to do something different. _Maybe that's what's going on here, _Miley thought, staring down at the lilt pool of maple syrup on her plate.

She sighed at looked at Lilly. A sudden giddy happiness spread through her as she watched Lilly vigorously down her last waffle. Miley couldn't explain it; she felt so strange all the sudden. She couldn't help but stare.

When Lilly caught her unyielding gaze, she paused and smiled. "What is it? Do I have something on my face?"

"No", Miley said, a lot more airily than she meant to. "It's… nothing."

Lilly stared back for a moment, then quickly looked down at her plate. She blushed deeply as she picked at the last piece of her waffle.

Miley suddenly felt incredibly stupid, and even more so when she realized she was _still_ staring. _Dammit, Miley. What are you doing? _She thought to herself. She bit her lip and stared down at her hands, pretending to pick at her nails.

"So", Lilly said, eating the last piece of her waffle. "What do you want to do?" She stood up and rinsed off her plate, setting it in the sink.

Miley followed suit, putting her plate on top of Lilly's. "Uh, I don't know. I'll do what you want to do", she responded absentmindedly.

Lilly stood there for a moment, thinking. Out of nowhere, Miley seized the opportunity to wrap her in a tight hug.

"Whoa! Miley?" Lilly said. "Did I miss something?" She smile crookedly and hugged back.

"No", Miley said softly. "Lilly, I was… scared. Really scared. I thought you were gone."

"Are you still talking about your dream?" Lilly asked, giving her back a soft rub. "We all have nightmares, Miley. They're not real."

Miley chuckled humorlessly. "This one really felt like it. And heck, I would have had to be asleep for like, a week to dream all that up."

Lilly smiled tenderly and looked at Miley closely. "Well, it's over and everything is okay." Her smile quickly turned sheepish. "Besides, to I look dead to you?"


	8. Chapter 8: Side Effect

Chapter 8: Side Effect

"C'mon, Miley! At least get in!" Lilly begged.

"Aww, Lilly", Miley complained.

"We've been sunbathing for practically an hour now", Lilly said. "Let's catch some waves!"

Miley sighed, pulling off her sunglasses and stretching out on her sandy towel. "You know how bad I am at surfing. I always get pummeled."

"You don't have to surf", Lilly said, grabbing her surfboard. "You can just swim instead."

"But I was just getting comfy!" Miley whined.

Lilly rolled her eyes. "Fine, don't come in, you party-pooper." She took off toward the ocean.

Miley watched her mingle through the beach-goers and disappear in seconds. She felt bad all the sudden, refusing to go with Lilly like that. It was like blowing her off. Again. She sat up straight and looked down at her towel, the nightmare she'd lived through still fresh on her mind. Without another thought, she let her sunglasses fall onto her towel and stood up, walking toward the water. She quickly reached the shore and squinted in the sunlight, looking for Lilly. She was still paddling out.

_Perfect,_ Miley thought, an impish smile on her face. She waited for the next wave to crash to the shore before diving into the water. At first it was chilly, but she quickly got used to it. She stayed low, not wanting Lilly to see her. As quickly as she could, she swam onward, diving under the waves that threatened to drag her back to the shore. When she was close enough to Lilly, she quickly got behind her and ducked down low. Lilly was scanning the distant waters for waves, having no idea who was behind her.

Miley laughed silently to herself. With all her strength, she sprang up and roared, throwing her arms around Lilly's waist.

"Eeeeep!" Lilly shrieked in terror. She jumped up and slid off her surfboard, falling into the water. She quickly surfaced, gasping and grabbing for her surfboard. Miley sat on it triumphantly.

"Miley!?" Lilly said, surprised and exhilarated. "What the heck was that!?"

"Just me, dethroning the champion." She smiled smugly, putting her hands on her hips. "Hey, you asked me to go swimming in the first place."

Lilly stared up at her, mouth agape in faux anger.

"Come on, I was just playing", Miley said, moving over and helping Lilly back onto the surfboard.

"Yeah, well, you scared the crap out of me", Lilly said, crossing her arms, pretending to smolder.

Miley gave her arms a little squeeze. "Hey! Kidding, remember?"

Lilly smiled. "I'm gonna get you for that. Mark my words."

Miley rolled her eyes and sighed. "You don't deserve to be blown off, Lilly." Her tone deepened. "I should have learned that a long time ago."

Lilly cocked her head, taken aback. "Miley, saying that you don't want to go swimming with me isn't exactly 'blowing me off'."

"Well, I think it is."

"Okay", Lilly said, shrugging. "If it means I get some company, than I like it!"

Miley rested her dripping head on Lilly's shoulder and gave her an affectionate hug.

"Again with the hugs, Miley?" Lilly said, amused.

"What is wrong with hugging?" Miley asked, still not letting go.

"Uh, nothing, I guess", Lilly said quickly. She nervously looked away, trying to hide her blushing face.

"What, do I stink or something?" Miley asked, almost laughing.

"No, no!" Lilly said. "You smell… amazing."

Miley slowly let go and looked at her. Embarrassment spread across Lilly's face. Miley found herself staring at her again, unable to look away. But she forced herself to snap out of it.

She, too, was blushing. "Umm… thanks."

"Oh, look!" Lilly said immediately. "Here comes a wave!"

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley was nothing short of euphoric that entire day. So when Lilly begged her to go see Jake Ryan's new movie, she gladly accepted. Any other day, she probably would have rejected; she never really liked Jake's movies and usually she would just grin and bear through them. It wasn't because of the variable bitterness that stemmed from their previous relationship, but rather because Miley simply found the type of movies he acted in overly dramatic and outlandish. But, for some reason, she didn't have a care in the world. It wasn't just that, though. Miley felt so different for the first time in a while, as if she was looking at the world from a different sort of perspective.

_Yet another mystery for me to solve, _Miley thought almost happily. She kept thinking that her "dream" was responsible for her newfound joy. One-hundred percent contradictory. She tried to sort through it, rationalize it as best she could. As she looked back on it, she could practically see each scene stacked up and ready to be organized. For now, she reached a narrow conclusion: it was so tragic that her subconscious was making up for it now by granting her so sort of unfounded joy. _What else could it be? _she thought, a tone of finality, whether real or imagined, ringing through her head.

Miley didn't even realize that the movie had begun until now. She looked over at Lilly who was munching on popcorn, eyes glued to the screen; she couldn't help but smile.

For the first time since the "dream", Miley could feel her mind beginning to piece it together. Or maybe at least rationalize its cause and aftermath, excluding the bizarre length and the painful reality of it all. Her life had been quite unsound lately. _Maybe that's the source of all this weirdness,_ she thought. Almost nothing had been set in stone during the past few months. Her celebrity life was getting more and more stressful, no matter how much she tried to deny it. Along with that, her family life was becoming quite busy, with her dad having to travel so much and Jackson starting to scope out colleges. She'd been taking on so many new responsibilities lately, and she realized that maybe the stress of it all was beginning to affect her.

The one person in her life who hadn't changed was Lilly. Lilly had been her same, bubbly self no matter how inconsistent Miley was in her ways; she still felt guilty for that. And when she thought Lilly, the one person who she was beginning to think was keeping her sane, was gone, her whole world collapsed. But now that she knew her best friend was alive and well, she was healed completely. Perhaps her happiness was simply a welcomed side effect.

Before Miley knew it, the credits were rolling and the theater lights were flickering to life.

"Good movie, huh, Miley?" Lilly said.

"Huh?" Miley responded. "Oh. Yeah. Good movie." She couldn't even remember the title. Her thoughts had carried her farther away than she had realized.

**A/N: Hope you're all still enjoying my story! Just a little heads up: This is the last chapter that I have **_**prewritten, **_**so I won't be able to update practically every single day (sadly). But I promise you, I will continue to avidly write this story and try my best to bring fast updates! So don't freak out if I'm not updating practically every day. Hey, if I'm not updating my fanfic, chances are, I'm writing it! **


	9. Chapter 9: Dejavu

Chapter 9: Déjà-vu

"So, what time's the big gig in LA tomorrow?" Lilly asked Miley as they walked toward home.

"Gig?" Miley asked.

"Yeah, you've been talking about it all week."

Miley idly kicked a little sand dune. "Tomorrow's the… 13th?"

"Yep", Lilly said, picking up a little seashell and studying it.

Miley nodded her face blank. _God, I swear I'm in some sort of time warp, _she thought as she watched Lilly chuck the shell into the sparkling ocean. She could thought she'd just had a gig in LA.

"So, do you know what time it starts?" Lilly asked.

"I'm not all that sure", Miley said, feeling dumb.

"You don't know what time it's at?" Lilly said, surprised. "It's your own concert, Miley!"

"I've been having some off days…" Miley said. _That's an understatement,_ she thought to herself.

"Okay... Lola will be there!" Lilly said with a smile.

Miley smiled along with her, happiness still pulsing through her like a drug.

"Anyways, I'll see you there", Lilly said, walking away.

It took Miley a little while to realize that they'd reached Lilly's house.

"Hey, what's the rush?" Miley said, not wanting her to leave.

"My dad's picking me up for a Lakers game." She made a face. "There's a bunch of other things I'd rather be doing, but hey, he's my dad."

Miley felt like the drug just disappeared. She was crushed, and it must have shown on her face.

"I'm sorry, Miley", Lilly said tenderly. "I should've given you a heads-up, but I was having so much fun!" She smiled cutely.

Miley felt a little bit better. "Don't worry about it. Y'all have a good time."

Lilly grinned. "See you tomorrow."

"See ya."

Lilly turned to run the rest of the way.

"Wait!" Miley yelled.

Lilly skidded to a stop. "What is it?"

Miley answered with a huge hug.

Lilly tensed all the sudden, but quickly relaxed in Miley's arms. She gave into the moment, not asking any questions.

Miley breathed deeply and closed her eyes.

The waves crashed beside them and the breeze made their hair dance about and intertwine.

Miley clung to Lilly, rubbing her right cheek against her ear and down her jaw line, finally nestling into her neck. Lilly's jaw trembled ever so slightly when Miley's hair brushed against her exposed neck. Miley could almost hear Lilly's heart quickening. Or maybe she was just hearing the excited tempo of her own heart. She was suddenly aware of every inch of Lilly's body against hers. A new sort of thrill was overtaking her previous euphoric happiness and she was convinced she'd never let go.

Lilly breathed in sharply, slightly withdrawing her arms. A small squeak escaped her trembling lips. Miley couldn't tell if it was a squeak of fear, excitement, or pleasure.

Miley didn't know how to react. She pulled back a little, gazing into Lilly's eyes. She searched the clear blue pools of sapphire, sensing a hint of uncertainty sneaking about them. Now she _really_ didn't know how to react.

Lilly slowly wiggled out of Miley's arms, blushing like crazy. "I, uh, gotta go." She turned and ran toward her house. "Bye, Miley." She disappeared through the back door.

Miley stood there, a bit stunned from one of the most uncertain moments of her entire life. She looked down at her feet for no apparent reason. She stood there and waited for her mind to become operational again.

The sudden thrill of her emotions had been nothing short of a bolt from the blue. She had no clue what to make of it. With a nervous sigh, she looked at the back door of Lilly's house and extended her gaze out toward the water. For an eerie moment, she could almost see bright yellow tape with foreboding black letters fencing off the beach behind Lilly's house. The ghastly memory jump started her drifting mind.

She ran the rest of the way home as nightfall close in.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

(The next morning)(Monday)

Miley awoke to the soft beams of morning sunlight. She stretched and rolled out of bed, perfectly relaxed. She felt so content that she sang blissfully in the shower.

When she made it downstairs, she found a plate of eggs waiting at the table.

"Morning, honey!" Robbie Ray said. "I made it! Got in pretty early."

"Daddy! You're back!" Miley said, hugging him.

"You betcha", her dad said, kissing her head.

"How was the uh…"

"Convention?" he said. "Pretty good. You would have been bored out of your mind, but I went to see your Uncle Earl. He told me to tell ya howdy."

"Aw, good old Uncle Earl", Miley said, sitting down at the table.

"Yeah, I had a good time. The whole flight delay was kinda aggravating, but I made it. That's all that matters, I suppose."

Miley smiled and started on her eggs. Robbie Ray joined her with a plate of his own.

"Uh, hey dad?" Miley said after a few minutes. "I wanted to ask you something."

"Sure, bud. Shoot."

"It's kinda strange, but… it's been on my mind all, well almost all day yesterday." She thought for a moment about how to say it. "Has anything ever happened to you that you just couldn't explain? Like… some sort of really confusing dream that gave you… like déjà-vu the next day?"

"A dream that gave me déjà-vu?" he asked, putting his fork down.

"Yeah, I… know it sounds really weird", Miley said, looking down at what remained of her eggs. "I had this… dream. I guess that's what you'd call it. It was the longest dream I think I had in my entire life. And now, I swear some of it is actually happening. But only some of it. Like, you went on a trip to Nashville in the dream and then it really happened. And Lilly won a gold medal at a skate competition in the dream, and that really happened. But there was some things that didn't and definitely won't happen." She thought of her imaginary trip to Hawaii and Lilly's fabled death. The last part pained her more than she expected, almost like a new bruise pulsing out blood in her scarred heart.

"Well, honey", her dad said. "I can't honestly say I remember anything like that happening to me. I've had some pretty crazy dreams in my life, and they are influenced by our daily lives. But I don't believe that I've ever dreamt something and it ended up coming true."

Miley nodded slowly. "I didn't think so…" She felt so confused. The dream was beginning to question and defy her mind. She just couldn't find an answer to all of it; only pieces of it, here and there.

But, nevertheless, she still felt at ease. Things seemed to be returning to some stretch of normality for her. At least, as of now they did.


	10. Chapter 10: Livewire

Chapter 10: Livewire

(That afternoon)

Miley excitedly jumped backstage, a smile shining on her face. The roar of the satisfied crowd still lingered in her ringing ears.

"Hannah Montana does it again!" Robbie Ray said as her joined her backstage. "Honey, you were amazing out there!"

"Thanks, daddy", she said, catching her breath.

"Sure thing, bud. I s'pose you're tired of hearing this, but…"

"You're proud of me. I know", she said.

"Well, yeah", he said, narrowing his eyes. "What are you, some kind of mind reader?"

"I guess you could say that", Miley replied wistfully. She looked down, her expression growing distant. "Daddy, I swear I've done that show before."

"Really? You do perform here a lot." He smiled lightly, almost mockingly. "Sure it ain't just _déjà-vu_ from that?"

She felt mad all the sudden. "No, it's not", she growled, pulling off the microphone hooked to her ear. "Listen, it felt like the same exact show I did last time. Even rehearsal this morning was the same. And last time I checked, I'm not on tour." She shook her head. "Something's just seems… not right."

"Miley, as your manager, I'm sure you haven't done this show before", he said firmly. "Not only that, but this is the first time you've ever done your newer songs for a live audience."

"But dad, I know I've done these songs before", she said, irritated. "And it was right here in LA, too."

"Honey, I really doubt it", he said with absolute certainty. "Unless you performed without me knowing, or if you were dreaming, this is the first time you did this show."

She felt like screaming. _I wish I never had that stupid dream, _she thought heatedly. _Everything's screwed up because of it. _It had no doubt complicated things for her. She felt like every other thing she said was a question, a doubt, or a speculation that everyone disregarded and rejected.

"So where's Lola?" Miley/Hannah asked, trying to ignore her seething frustration.

"I just saw her", her dad said. "She caught sight of the food and bolted, but she said she'd be right back."

"If she comes back, tell her I'm in my dressing room", she said, impatiently walking away.

"Will do, bud."

She was about to open to door to her dressing room when a voice from behind her made her stop.

"Hannaaaaaah!"

Miley turned to the sound of the high-pitched, nasally greeting. Traci was running up to her.

_Oh, great,_ she thought, her head pounding all the sudden. _Just what I need._

"Muwah! Muwah!" Traci said as she gave both of Miley's cheeks faux kisses. Miley just stood there with just as faux a smile, not caring to return the gesture.

"Great performance!" Traci squeaked. "Loved that big finish." Her voice dropped lower (even then her voice was an octave too high) during the last part, as if she was telling some kind of juicy secret.

Miley felt utterly annoyed. "Thanks." She had to put a lot of effort into keeping her expression borderline friendly.

"Bravo, I must say!" Traci exclaimed, a smile plastered to her face.

"Glad you liked it", Miley said with her hand on the dressing room doorknob. "Listen, Traci, I'm kind of in a hurry. I've got a… thing I have to get to." She felt bad for lying, but right now, she just wasn't in the mood for Traci's antics.

"Oh, that's too bad", Traci said. "Evan and I were wondering if you'd want to check out this awesome new club on Southshore Boulevard. Are you free later tonight?"

"Uh, Traci, I don't know."

"Oh, come on, Hannah! I'm sure _ev_eryone will be there. You should have been there last night!"

_Yeah, sure, _Miley thought with an inaudible sigh.

Traci was blathering on about some party she had went to last night and how they'd hit that new club afterwards. "So, are you in?" she said.

"What time?" Miley asked impatiently.

"Around nine", Traci replied. "We'll be watching for you!" With that, she pranced off.

Miley felt like banging her head against the wall. She had a strange notion that she'd regret that. She walked into her dressing room and slammed the door behind her, praying for no more interruptions. She had just finished changing when someone knocked on the door. She stopped what she was doing and threw her wig back on, just in case.

She opened the door. "What!?" she said, a bit sharper than she'd anticipated.

Lilly jumped a little, her eyes wide, at the tension in Miley's voice.

"Oh. Lilly", Miley said. Her heart seemed to tremble for some reason. "Sorry."

"That's… okay", Lilly said nervously. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, uh, nothing", Miley said quickly. She changed the subject. "Why aren't you in disguise?"

"Oh", Lilly said, twirling her finger through her straight blonde hair. "Pretty much everybody's gone, so I really didn't think I needed the wig."

Miley peeked out the door. "Good", she said, taking hers off. "I've been wearing this thing long enough."

Lilly followed her in. "Man, I love your dressing room!" She spun around with her arms outstretched, collapsing on the dark leather couch. "Great show, as always, Miss Hannah Montana!"

Miley could almost feel the irritation melting out of her. "Thank you, my dear."

Lilly giggled, sprawling herself out across the couch. "Those new songs sounded amazing!"

"Good. I'm glad!"

"So, what's up for the rest of the day?" Lilly asked, looking at her from upside down.

"I… don't know", Miley said, sitting beside her on the long couch. She didn't want to mention the whole club thing going on that night; she didn't know whether she'd blow it off or not. "I think my dad said I have some publicity thing later today, but I have to check."

"Just don't over-work yourself", Lilly said. She laid her head against Miley's leg.

Miley smiled down at her and started playing with her hair. "Sometimes I wish I could just take a few days off being a celebrity."

"Really?" Lilly asked, closing her eyes.

"Yeah. Every so often."

Lilly nestled her head up closer, her eyes still closed.

Miley was staring again. _Oh, damn,_ she thought, as her heart fluttered. _What is going on with me? _She couldn't look away. Her hands ran through Lilly's hair, almost involuntarily. The silky tresses of Lilly's hair tickled her wrists.

She felt her every nerve ending become a livewire as Lilly gave a small sigh of pleasure.

"That feels so good, Miley", Lilly said. She trembled a little, her smile widening.

This wasn't the first time Miley had done that sort of thing with Lilly. But this time, it was so incredibly different. Her entire body reacted in a totally different way, and when her senses indulged in the experience, she found that she just couldn't stop.

"Mmm…" Lilly sighed quietly.

Miley stroked her hair very slowly this time. She kept going downward, brushing over Lilly's ear and down her bare neck.

Lilly shivered and fell silent as Miley continuously ran her fingers up and down her neck.

Miley swore she was bewitched in those moments. She traced her fingers over Lilly's collar bone, back up her neck and down to the top of her chest. She didn't notice that Lilly was shaking like a leaf.

"M…Miley?" Lilly whispered.

"Yeah?" Miley said absently, returning her quivering fingers to Lilly's hair.

Lilly didn't answer. Instead, she raised her head and sat up halfway. Her face was inches from Miley's.

Miley was transfixed, lost in Lilly's gaze. They were so close Miley could see the tiny dark speckles in Lilly's clear blue eyes. She put her hand on the base of Lilly's neck.

Lilly was frozen in place. Miley couldn't tell if she was mesmerized, confused, or freaked out. The thought just made her heart flutter even more. Miley hungered to pull her closer.

The door flew open. "Hey, Miles", Robbie Ray said. "You ready to…" He stopped short when he saw them.

They stared toward him, snapping out of their trances. They jumped away from each other as fast as they could.

Robbie Ray looked perplexed. "Um… you girls ready to head out?"

Miley shot up. "Yeah." Her voice was shaking all over the place. "Let's get going." She grabbed her purse and ran out. Lilly stumbled out behind her.


	11. Chapter 11: Craving

Chapter 11: Craving

(Later that evening)

It was out of some shred of celebrity duty, or perhaps just plain old responsibility that compelled Miley to accept Traci's curt invitation. So there she was, staring out the tinted backseat window of her limo. Traffic was thick in downtown LA, and the limo inched along in the long line of close-packed vehicles. She sighed, just knowing this was a sign of things to come.

She just couldn't begin to reach, let alone break through, the unexplained layers of boredom that clouded her mind and dampered her heart. Her ennui was so potent, she almost felt depressed. With another sigh, she laid her head against the cool window, her long blonde wig falling all around her face. It just frustrated her even more that she couldn't figure it out. She always loved going out to parties and clubs. She'd even go out of her way to make it to such an outing. But now, she just didn't want anything to do with it.

She pressed her forehead against the glass. _What is it I want then? _She thought to herself. The answer came alarmingly fast: Lilly. Her heart sped up, practically on overdrive already. She was utterly overcome by the flood of her own emotions.

"We've arrived, Miss Montana", the driver said, bringing the limo to a stop in front of the club.

"Great…" Miley said weakly.

He got out of the limo and appeared at her door, politely opening it.

She stepped out onto the sidewalk. It was tinged with a headache-inducing florescent mix of pink, green, and blue from the neon letters that spelled out the club's name. The name, Southshore Beach Hut, was surrounded by flat-out annoying embellishments, all flashing and glowing. For some reason, it just made Miley feel even more depressed.

As soon as she came through the doors, Traci grabbed her. "Hannaaaaaah!" she chirped. "Glad to see you made it!" She literally towed Miley through the sea of people crowding the club. "Of course you remember Evan", she said, pointing out a guy who was struggling to save her and Traci a seat in the lounge area.

Miley gave him a little wave of greeting. He smiled at her, returning the gesture.

"Oh, wait till you meet Isaac!" Traci said, her eyes wide with their usual excitement. "And you're going to love Angela! Oh, and I _must _introduce you to…"

The list just went on. Miley smiled, pretending to be interested every time she spouted off a new member of her "entourage". At almost every outing Miley had been to with Traci, she'd meet a bunch of new people Traci claimed to be her friends. Miley had always silently speculated the "friends" part because she would never see the same people twice. Other than Evan, she was willing to bet she'd never see most of the people she'd be introduced to tonight ever again. But she didn't exactly cry over that fact; almost all of them were rude, conceited, or a combination of both.

Once again Traci towed her through the crowd. It was pretty dark and she kept thinking she'd slam into someone at any moment. The air was smokey, making her gag or cough every few minutes. She just knew this was a mistake.

Traci kept on lugging her all around. She stopped here and there to introduce Miley to someone. At first, Miley greeted everyone and struck up light conversations with them. But by the time she lost count of how many people she met, she'd just let Traci give her introduction and then force out a "Hi, it's nice to meet you".

It seemed like hours had passed when Miley finally sat down with Traci and Evan in the lounge. Traci shoved some sort of drink at her and started hamming her with a barrage of questions. Miley gave up trying to keep a grin on her face and gave answers just long enough to not be considered rude. As soon as Traci finished her Q and A, the monologue began.

Miley sat back, half-listening to Traci jabber on and on about the latest, hottest gossip. _You just love to hear the sound of your own voice, don't you, Traci, _she thought, the closest to being amused she'd been since she arrived. She looked down at her drink, not knowing what it really was. Instead of interrupting Traci's _love_ly story about how Dakota Fanning tripped at some party yesterday, she just took a sip. She gagged slightly as the liquid burned down her throat. _Something alcoholic, no doubt, _she thought, mildly worried. She set it down on the table.

After rambling on for what seemed like hours upon hours to Miley, Traci paused to catch her breath and shift gears. "So, Hannah. Why weren't you at the party yesterday?"

"Huh?" Miley said, taken off guard. Her mind was still in the no-response-or-sign-of-life-needed phase that she was usually in when Traci chattered on for more than an hour. And now she knew it was time for the answer-the-non-rhetorical-question-Traci-is-asking-you phase. "Uh, party? What party was that?"

"Hm", Traci said. "She told me she tried to call you about it. You must have missed the memo! Yesterday was…"

"Hey, Traci", Evan said, cutting her off. He'd just returned from the bar area. "You wanna dance?"

"Dance?" she said, giving him a flirty look. "Sure." She got up. "I'll be back later, Hannah. You should come dance!"

_Actually, I feel more like banging my head against the wall, _Miley thought. Her own cynical thoughts sort of surprised her. "Actually, I think I'll just hang here for a while. I'm uh, not really up for dancing right now."

"Suit yourself", Traci chirped. "Don't have too much fun without me!"

"Oh, don't worry", Miley said with fake enthusiasm. "I won't."

Traci laughed her twittering, too-high giggle and went off with Evan toward the dance floor.

Miley sighed, blowing a piece of her blonde wig out of her face. _Well, if blondes really do have more fun, that girl must be absolutely miserable, _she thought sarcastically as Traci bounced out of sight.

She took another sip of her drink, just for the heck of it. It still burned the whole way down, but she really didn't care. As she sat there, she just knew she'd been to this so-called new club before. But her mind just gave up pursuing that thought after staring at the gaudy "Opening Night" banner still hanging above the stage from last night where the DJ was blasting clichéd clubbing music.

Miley thought about ditching more times than she could count during the next hour, but she just didn't go through with it. There was always someone coming over to chat with her, so she began losing track of time. A good amount of guys who flirted with her were among them. Any other day, she would have flirted right back, but something she couldn't identify kept taking over, and she didn't flirt one bit.

After a while, she found herself alone a good bit of the time. She could honestly say she preferred it that way right now. It seemed to her that her body was stuck here, sitting in the loud, smoky room and sipping on some unknown alcoholic beverage, but her heart was elsewhere.

Miley didn't know what to think about in her moments alone, but every time she'd leave it up to her barely present heart, the subject would immediately be Lilly. She couldn't stop thinking about what had happened between them earlier that day. The scene kept playing over and over again in her head like a broken record. But even so, she found herself craving to relive the experience and continue it uninterrupted. When she got to thinking that, her mind would just go blank, as if someone just switched her entire thought process off. Then it would reboot, play the scene again, and go blank when the craving returned.

She stood up, trying to regain control of her train of thought. She shifted it away from the reoccurring thought as best she could, still not knowing what to do about it. Not knowing why, she began walking around, ultimately ending up right where she started. Her mind went blank all over again as she stared out into the crowd. But, just as quickly as her mind went blank, it plunged into action, unearthing a vivid memory.

There, in front of her, was the crowd. She could still see them, but their voices shrunk to mere whispers. It took her a little while to realize that this crowd was totally different from the one she was truly among. Her mind had brought her elsewhere. The scent of cigarette smoke shifted to the scent of too many flowers. Her heart began thudding frantically as the scene shifted fully; she was in front of a beautiful casket surrounded by flowers. She unconsciously peered inside, catching a glimpse of Lilly's lifeless body. She reached down, feeling Lilly's skin beneath hers. Her eyes were beginning to fail her, but not before she felt the coldness of Lilly's lips with her trembling fingers. And then, as quickly as it had began, it was all over.

Miley's eyes snapped open. She gasped, looking all around her. The noise of many conversations and the smell of smoke were back. Without a second thought, she took off toward the bathroom. She was glad to find no one there when she arrived. Quickly, she took off her wig and buttoned the jacket she wore, stuffing the wig inside. As herself now, she dashed out of the bathroom and headed for the door.

Thankfully, no one said a word to her. The traffic was thinning out a little, but she just didn't want to have to wait for her limo. She decided to walk home, trying to clear the many confusing thoughts building up and overflowing in her mind.


	12. Chapter 12: Struck

Chapter 12: Struck

(Two days later – Wednesday)

"Okay, so this one is definitely a specialty of mine!" Lilly called down to Miley from atop the half pipe.

"Let's see it!" Miley called back.

Lilly hopped on her skateboard and flew down the ramp. She sped up the other side and soared skyward. She caught the very edge of the ledge with one hand, bringing her legs, along with her skateboard, above her head. Then, she swung her legs around and jumped back on her skateboard, straightening her body as she flew back down the ramp. When she reached the other ledge, she stuck a perfect landing, a glorious smile shining on her face.

"Whoo!" Miley cheered, clapping. "That's my girl! Lilly, you rock!"

Lilly giggled as she coasted down the ramp and hopped off her skateboard, joining Miley on the pavement.

"Thanks, Miley", she said. "I really wanted to show you that one. I finally got it down!"

Miley smiled at her, unable to ignore the reflex. "I'm tellin' ya, Lilly. You got X-Games written all over you!" She ran her fingers through the silky blonde hair that framed Lilly's adorable face. She did it a bit too slow to be considered merely "friendly", but Lilly didn't buy into it.

"Well, I don't know about that…" Lilly said comically. "Maybe if I live that long." She pointed out the bandaged "flesh wound" (as she had dramatically deemed it) that she got earlier that day on her arm.

Miley felt like she'd been punched right in the gut, and her face sure showed it.

"Miley, what's wrong?" Lilly asked, her joking smile vanishing.

"Uhh…" Miley stammered. The pain subsided as Lilly searched her eyes. "Nothing. Nothing at all. Just uh… just a cramp."

"Ooh", Lilly said, narrowing her eyes and frowning. "Hate those."

"Yeah", Miley said. _Sure as hell didn't see that coming, _she thought. "But it's fine. Gone now."

Lilly nodded, her smile returning, but not quite the whole way. She took off her helmet. "Anyways, we can leave if you're bored, Miley. I know you don't really like hanging out here very much."

"Oh, no", Miley said reassuringly. "Don't worry about it, Lils. I don't mind it here at all. And we couldn't hang out at all yesterday 'cause Hannah had to star in that commercial that her father totally _sprung _on her just yesterday with barely _any _notice!" She crossed her arms, letting out an annoyed moan.

Lilly rolled her eyes, a huge smile on her lips. "Are you sure? Normally you'd be complaining by now."

"Well, normally I'd have been bumped, hit, or run over by now. But look around. This place is dead." Her stomach lurched a little. She just couldn't tolerate that word today.

"Yeah, you got a point", Lilly said. "It's pretty cloudy today. Oh, and that new indoor skate park down the street is really emptying this place out."

"Well, that's good for you, right?" Miley said. "Gives you more space to soar!" She held out her arms at her sides, pretending to ride the wind.

"Yeah, I guess", Lilly said with a giggle. Even so, her tone was a bit forlorn. "Most of my friends I skate with here have ditched me. The emptiness of this place sort of reminds me of that. Guess I'm a loner now."

"Hey, just because you don't have anybody to skate with doesn't mean you're a loner", Miley said. "You've got me. And I'd gladly hop on a scooter and make a fool of myself to keep up with you. Well, _try _to keep up with you anyway."

Lilly looked into her eyes, the corners of her lips pulling into a soft smile. She slipped her arms under Miley's and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Now it's _my _turn to hug _you_", Lilly said cutely.

Miley didn't quite expect the burst of bliss that shot through her when Lilly threw herself into her arms. Her heart fluttered and leaped, thudding like crazy. She fervently returned the embrace. A tingle of pleasure shot down her spine when she felt the tiny wisps of Lilly's breath sweeping over her neck. She felt like she was falling, no, definitely not falling. Floating.

A sudden rumble of thunder disturbed the quiet and rattled through the ground beneath their feet.

Lilly let out a little "Whoa" of surprise, pulling back in response to the disruption.

Miley honestly wanted to growl. _Dammit, _she thought, wanting so badly for the unfinished moment to go on.

She caught a glimpse of the red rushing to Lilly's cheeks before Lilly turned to hide her face. "Storm's coming", she said blankly.

Miley sighed. "Thanks for that report, Captain Obvious", she said admiringly. Her smile returned; there was just no way she couldn't smile around Lilly.

Lilly waited a long moment, pretending to be interested in the sullen gray sky. She turned back to Miley, her expression hard to read.

Miley suddenly wished she could just read her mind. _Could she be feeling what I'm feeling? _Miley thought. _What is it I'm feeling? _A little voice in the back of her mind screamed the answer. _Shut up! Shut up! _She almost said out loud.

"Maybe we should head back", Miley said, trying to focus on the matter at hand. "Wouldn't want to get struck by lightning or anything."

Lilly looked up at the foreboding clouds again. "Yeah, let's go. What's with all these storms lately anyway?"

They quickly stared toward home. Lilly just carried her helmet and skateboard, obviously not wanting to leave Miley in the dust. That act alone was enough to make Miley grin the whole way back. They were almost to their neighborhood when rain started trickling down.

"Aww, man", Lilly said. "We'd better hurry!" She started running. "C'mon, Miley!"

"Oh, geez, Lilly!" Miley said, speeding up. "Slow down!"

"Oh, come on", Lilly said eagerly. Her smile turned impish. "Just because I can outrun you doesn't mean you can't put up a fight!"

"Lilly!" Miley whined.

"Miley!" Lilly whined right back.

With a heavy sigh, Miley took off after her, knowing she'd be beaten. As if to just make her mad, the rain started coming down in buckets.

"Oh, great", Miley said. She hopelessly tried to keep her hair from getting soaked. She began sprinting through the rain, glad to see her house in sight. _Almost there, _she thought, the chilly rain dripping down her face.

When she had practically made it, she tripped in a pothole, splashing face first into a puddle. She groaned in aggravation and raised her head, catching sight of Lilly. A bout of laughter bubbled out of her as she fell to her knees on Miley's front porch.

Miley practically crawled the rest of the way up her soaked walkway. When she reached the top step of the front porch she stood up. She looked down at her best friend.

Lilly was doubled over in laughter. Her skateboard and helmet had flown out of her hands and she was laying on her back, unable to control the bursts of giggles that took over her.

Miley towered over her, angry that she wasn't wet at all.

Lilly gazed up at her, tears in her eyes. "Aaaah haa haa! Miley! Oh my g… haa haa! You're s… so funny! Haa HAA!" She couldn't stop.

Miley bared her teeth, playful anger smoldering on her face. She realized she probably looked like hell standing there, dripping all over the porch.

Lilly was trying to catch her breath and steady herself long enough to stand up.

Miley gave her a little growl, the reflexive smile beginning to return. She silently offered Lilly her hand.

Lilly, still giggling, took it and tried to get up.

Miley pulled her up halfway, then shook her soaked head as vigorously as she could, right in Lilly's face.

Lilly recoiled. "Gaa!" she said, rubbing her eyes. "Miley!"

Miley grinned smugly, her tongue poking between her teeth, eyeing Lilly with a sly gaze.

Lilly pushed out her bottom lip and pretended to be on the verge of tears.

Miley's expression softened. She slipped her hands into Lilly's, inching closer to her.

Lilly's lips trembled a little. Her cheeks flushed bright red all over again, but this time, she didn't try to hide it at all. Everything, excluding the constant trickling of the rain, seemed to fall silent around them. The lightning had ceased, silencing the din of the thunder.

Miley held onto Lilly's hand and pulled her out into the falling rain. At first, she thought Lilly would object to it, but she had actually given in, letting the rain soak her to the bone.

Miley felt a rush of playful energy. She took off, heading for the beach behind her house. "C'mon, Lilly! Bet I can beat you this time!"

Lilly was frozen in place for a minute, but soon recognized the challenge and began running.

Miley flew across the corner of the house and made a beeline for the beach. _I know I've got her beat this time, _Miley thought with exhilaration. She rubbed the raindrops from her brow as she bolted past the back deck. Nearly there, she leaped off a rock overlooking the shoreline and landed on the sand. With a victorious laugh, she looked back toward the house, waiting for Lilly to catch up.

"Yoo hoo! Miley!" Lilly said from behind her.

Miley whipped her body around and found Lilly already there. Once again, she'd been beaten.

"What!?" Miley said, throwing her arms up in amazement. "How'd you get here before me?"

"Oh, that was easy", Lilly said. "I just hopped over the house."

"Yeah", Miley said. "Not convinced."

Lilly laughed. "I just went the other way around the house." She shook her head energetically, sprinkling Miley's already wet face. "Seriously, Miley. You're getting easier and easier to mess with."

Miley's mouth just hung open. She knew she shouldn't be surprised. And the reflex to smile won out over her chagrin.

"And the award for beating Miley and making her feel like a total idiot over one million times goes to Lilly Truscott!" Miley said.

"Oooh!" Lilly said, clapping. "What's my prize?"

"The chance to do it all over again and make Miley feel like ten times the idiot she already is."

Lilly grinned and gave Miley a quick, wet hug. But when she decided to pull away, she stopped halfway. Miley looked at her closely. Her hair was dripping wet. Her eyelashes trapped tiny beads of moisture above her mesmerizing, newly fey eyes. Her wet lips were slightly parted, still turned up at the corners; the beginning of another smile. Her cheeks, still pink, were streaked with fallen raindrops.

_So beautiful, _Miley thought. She was rooted to the spot. All the sudden, she noticed the way Lilly's wet clothes clung to her body. Something struck her. _Oh my God, _Miley thought, her body starting to tingle. She knew exactly what that feeling was that struck her; she just couldn't wrap her head around it. Miley ghosted closer, pressing her wet body against Lilly's.

Lilly trembled a little when Miley put her arms on her shoulders and crossed them behind her neck. Her breathing quickened considerably when Miley caressed the back of her neck.

_What are you doing? _Miley thought. The feeling kept resurfacing, over and over, and she couldn't deny it, not one bit. It was _desire._ It about overpowered her when it struck again. She nestled her head down into Lilly's wet neck and breathed her in. She moaned ever so quietly, but she knew Lilly heard it. Lilly trembled against her.

Miley couldn't really read the signal without having her doubts. _Was Lilly freaked out but too considerate to tell me to stop? Was she confused or afraid? Or, was she full of desire too?_ Those questions buzzed through her mind as her lips drew closer to Lilly's skin.

Not knowing what Lilly felt, Miley paused. She closed her eyes, trying to think, but she just couldn't. Her lips were already brushing over Lilly's jaw line.

Lilly was frozen.

Miley felt her every thought melt away, replaced by pure emotion. She slowly kissed Lilly's cheek and down her jaw, lingering for a while at her neck; four kisses total.

She cautiously pulled away, afraid Lilly would be angry or scared.

But she wasn't.

A long silence followed. The trickle of the rain had vanished, replaced by the sound of the waves lapping against the shore.

"Lilly", Miley half-whispered.

Lilly stared at her wordlessly.

Miley held her gaze. "Do you… want to have a movie night? Tonight?"

Lilly opened her mouth to say something, but all she ended up doing was nodding.

They let go of each other and headed for their houses; opposite directions along the coastline. They both looked back at each other twice.

At the same time.


	13. Chapter 13: Love and Reason

Chapter 13: Love and Reason

If it weren't for her dad's stern reminder, Miley would have left the deck door wide open on her way into the house.

"Geez, Miley" Robbie Ray said. "Don't leave the door hangin' open."

"Oh. Sorry, dad", Miley said, impatiently shutting it.

"Where've you been, bud? Thought you said you'd be back over an hour ago."

"Skatepark. With Lilly." The name flowed off her tongue so lyrically. She sighed. "We… kinda lost track of time."

"Must've lost track of the weather, too", he said as he put his newspaper down. "You're soaked."

Miley looked over her dripping attire. Her own indifference surprised her. She didn't care. Not one bit.

"Yeah", Miley said with a little shrug. "They're just clothes."

"Wow. Never thought I'd hear those words come out of Miley Stewart's mouth."

"Well, there's a first time for everything", she said.

"I outta put this one in the record book." He walked over to the fridge and got out the milk. "Now, Miley. Next time you go out somewhere, I want you to take your cell phone. Okay?"

"Oh. Whoops."

It really wasn't common for her to leave it behind, unless she was in a big hurry.

_I haven't checked it in days,_ Miley thought. Surprisingly, she didn't care about that either. It had just slipped to the back of her mind.

"Try to remember", her dad said. "I always wanna be in touch in case there's an emergency."

"Right", she said absentmindedly. "Anyway dad, I invited Lilly over for a movie night tonight. Is that okay?"

"Movie night, huh? Sure, I guess so. Just so you know, I got that meeting tonight and I might be out late."

"Oh", Miley said. She'd totally forgotten about that, too. "Right, right. You stay out as late as you want. We'll be fine here!" She felt like doing a victory dance right then and there. She had been racking her brain for an excuse to get her dad out of the house tonight ever since she'd walked through the door.

An impish smile spread across her face.

"All right…" His voice was full of suspicion.

She quickly chased her expression away, mashing her lips into a thin line.

Luckily, he didn't seem to buy into it. "Well, you'd better get changed before you catch your death."

Her muscles tightened. _There's that word again…_

"Oh, and throw down some towels when you get up there", he said, sitting down. "Better wipe that up before we forget about it and someone gets hurt."

Miley looked down at the little pool of water she stood in. "Sure thing, daddy." With that, she headed up the stairs.

After throwing off her wet clothes and putting on her bathrobe, she grabbed two towels out of the linen closet and tossed them down the stairs. Before getting to the bathroom, she veered off to her bedroom. She slipped through the door and silently pulled it shut, afraid she'd get caught for some reason.

It wasn't until then did her heart catch up with her, pounding an excited rhythm. She felt dizzy and frivolous; as if she was going to faint. She tried to gain control of her breathing, hoping that her heartbeat would follow and return to a more human level.

Miley collapsed on her bed and shut her eyes. _Calm down, calm down,_ she begged herself. It didn't really work.

Once again, she felt like she was floating. She could almost feel her mind detach itself from her, terminating its communication with her heart. Out of instinct, she reached to retrieve it, but she was only able to grasp tiny fragments of it. Her emotions seemed to like the idea of substituting for her mind. They fought for complete dominance over her fading logic.

Miley got up and stared into the mirror. She could see her mouth tremble and her eyes grow wide and unblinking. And then, without another moment's hesitation, five words came spilling out of her mouth, admitting what she was finally beginning to accept.

"I'm in love with Lilly…"

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

The warm water of the shower was welcoming as it flowed over Miley's body. She robotically went through the motions as she washed. Her rational mind still seemed far off in the cosmos, so she focused on trying to regain it. But on the flipside of that, her stomach worked hard to make its presence known. It was practically bouncing up and down, giddy from the butterflies that filled it.

_I just can't believe I did that… oh, God… why did I do that? _She thought as she unknowingly shampooed her hair for the fourth time. _What if I lose control like that tonight? What if she doesn't even come? I probably scared her away! She'll never talk to me again, I just know it… _

The radical thought tumbled through the fragments of her mind like a two-edged sword. All that she could take comfort in from these anxious concerns was that her logical mind was beginning to float back down to where it should be. But every time she thought of Lilly, of how lovingly and passionately she felt for her, her mind would take off again, seeming to challenge her to catch it every time on its way up. And, once again, she felt like telling herself to shut up.

In her head, she could almost see a third Miley telling her to get professional help while the first two Mileys disputed and contradicted one another's arguments. The thought of her silly, exaggerated metaphor almost made her laugh.

She turned off the water and dried off, wrapping herself in a towel. When she reached her bedroom, she thought maybe she'd calmed down and regained enough control to think a little. But she hadn't.

All she could think about was Lilly: her dripping body, her mesmerizing, fey gaze, and especially her soft, wet skin beneath Miley's lips.

Then, without warning, she felt her mind blast off skyward, replaced by an onslaught of all-too-eager emotions. Back and forth it went, first with her mind flying off out of sight and emotion flooding in, then with her mind's fragments floating back down and presenting contradictions and questions. Even with the battle of logic and emotion, of uncertainty and truth, going on in her head, she was able to begin to accept that she was in love. Her feelings have been growing stronger and stronger ever since the day she thought she was hallucinating when Lilly showed up at her door.

But it took a little longer for her to figure out why her feelings had intensified so suddenly. Everything that was confusing her, including her sudden adoring attraction to Lilly, seemed to stem from her complicated dream. And as soon as that clicked into place, Miley could feel the profound weight of the memories she'd stacked away in the back of her busy mind. They were still without a single particle of dust; nothing to dull or obscure them. Each memory was as intense as ever and she knew she'd never be able to let go of them completely. They were branded into the very tissues of her brain, still burning from the day they'd intruded. They played through her mind almost simultaneously. The terrible news; the empty desk in front of her; the yellow tape; the casket; the crimson pedals… Lilly.

Now her feelings were beginning to sound just a bit more reasonable to her. Whether it was all in her mind or not, the fact remained that she had lost Lilly. And when she was grieving, Lilly had returned. The very magnitude of Miley's situation, of any situation as life-changing as that, could easily cause feelings to change.

_Maybe that's what the whole dream was meant to do, _Miley thought as she put her pajamas on. _Maybe that's the reason… It's supposed to make me realize how I really feel about Lilly. _

She felt so certain about that all of the sudden. It was as if she'd finally solved the huge puzzle that crowded up her head and now it all fit together as it was meant to. But even so, there were missing pieces that she just couldn't seem to find. For instance, how a good amount of the events in her dream were actually happening, word-for-word. But even with some missing pieces, Miley was satisfied with the finished product.

_Maybe it's time to forget about it and move on, _Miley thought. It was comforting to admit it, but she knew it would never fully be gone. Even if she tried to throw it all away, she knew fragments of it would remain lurking in her head.

She chased the thought away for now and tried to clear her mind of the memories. She could almost see the three little Mileys from her imagination tying down her mind with ropes. And luckily it stayed, though it was shrouded by her eager emotions, circling around it like sly predators ready to spring.

Her rationality and logic were beginning to kick in now. And with that came worry.

_Lilly should be here soon, _she thought. Her clocked showed 7:53 pm. _What am I going to do when, or _if, _she shows up?_ She knew her feelings were definite and there was no way she could forget them. Almost like the dream, it was branded into her. Or maybe more like becoming a piece of her heart rather than branded.

_I've gotta play it cool, _Miley thought. _I have no clue if she remotely feels the same way or if she'd utterly disgusted with me. _She really wished she could know for sure so she could make a plan. But without knowing, it was hard for her to plan for anything.

She took a deep breath and felt the butterflies coming back. She was about to leave her room and head downstairs when she looked in the mirror. Her flowery, baby blue pajama set just didn't seem right all of the sudden. So she threw it off and chose something a little different: Soft, short pajama shorts and a light spaghetti strap tank top.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley sat on the couch, keeping her eyes on the clock. Her dad had already left for his meeting. She kept thinking Lilly would never show up, but something inside her convinced her to sit there and wait anyway. The quiet time allowed her to think things through for a while, now that her mind was cooperating and her emotions were under some semblance of control.

She lay back on the couch, still pondering her situation. At first, she wasn't sure what to think about her newfound feelings being directed to a girl. There weren't many times in the past she'd ever imagined being with another girl, but now, it just seemed right. It didn't feel at all unnatural to her with such true emotions to back her up: Love is love and that was all that needed to be said. Her biggest concern was how Lilly thought about all of this.

She looked over and saw a book lying on the kitchen table. She stood up and got it, suddenly remembering what it was doing there. It was William Shakespeare's _A Midsummer Night's Dream. _Miley's English class was supposed to read some of it over their break.

Miley sighed and brought it back to the couch with her. She opened to scene three and started reading. It sort of eased her anxiety, even though she wasn't very interested in it. While she was reading the first scene, she accidently read the same line twice. The line read: "And yet, to say the truth, reason and love keep little company nowadays." After reading it a second time, she paused. She reread the sentence again and ran her fingers over each word, as it trying to feel their message.

That one sentence absorbed her attention so much; she jumped in surprise when she heard the doorbell rang.


	14. Chapter 14: Signals

**A/N: Wow! 100 reviews and counting! Thought I'd just say a quick thank you to all who are still reading. I really appreciate all of your awesome reviews. They inspire me to keep on writing and updating as quickly as I can! Thanks so much, and I hope you like this chapter; I really enjoyed writing it, hee hee!**

Chapter 14: Signals

Miley sprang up, snapping her eyes toward the front door. She shut the book and tossed it on the coffee table. Her heart was already thrumming at unsafe levels.

"Okay, Miley", she whispered to herself. "Just calm down and take it easy."

The door seemed like it was a mile away as she approached it. On her way there, she fixed up her hair and straightened her shirt. She let out a little breath in attempt to calm herself, and then opened the door with an eager smile on her lips.

There stood Lilly. "Hi, hi!" she said cutely. She looked adorable. She wore soft, silky pajama bottoms and a thin, low-cut top. Her hair was straight with a few waves here and there. Everything about her looked perfect: absolute beauty without embellishment.

The butterflies in Miley's stomach suddenly felt like they were on fire. "Hey, Lilly" she said, her smile growing bigger and bigger. "I'm so glad you came."

Lilly stared at her for a moment before coming through the door. "Me too." She smiled brightly; Miley's favorite smile in the world.

Miley could feel her emotions flood in, but she swallowed them as best she could. "So, uh, what movie do you wanna watch?"

"Doesn't matter to me. I brought _The Notebook _if you want to watch that", Lilly said. She handed her the DVD.

"Yeah, sure", Miley said. "Sounds good."

"Okay", Lilly said. "Just warning you though. I always tear up a little at the end."

"Oh, I don't mind", Miley said. "Heck, I'll cry with you if you want me to."

Lilly beamed. "Thanks. You're the best, Miley."

"Well, I try", Miley said, amusement pulling even harder at the corners of her lips.

The opening scene was already unfolding when Miley tried to organize her thoughts, knowing that the awkward conversation would start soon. She had to admit that she was surprised when Lilly didn't mention what had happened that day right away. She really wanted to know how Lilly felt about it, even if it was disgust. As time went on, her emotions resurfaced, piece by piece, begging to be out in the open. And she knew, sooner or later, they would be.

Miley zoned out during a good bit of the movie, trying to sort through her mind and make sense of the jumbled mess of crazy thoughts that passed through it. When she wasn't busy with that, she attempt to move closer to Lilly without her noticing.

Lilly just kept on munching away at the popcorn and staring at the dramatic and romantic scenes that played across the screen. Her bright eyes were so intent, you'd think she was trying to discover the secret of the universe hidden somewhere in the movie.

Miley figured that since she'd tuned out most of the movie already, there was no use in trying to get into it now. Anyway, she already knew how it ended. She yawned and stretched, inching closer to Lilly. They were practically shoulder-to-shoulder. With each silent moment (other than a few "aww"s and "isn't that cute, Miley?"s from Lilly and simple words of agreement from herself) Miley grew more and more anxious. Lilly hadn't said a single thing about what had happened, and the movie was close to being over.

She was almost frustrated. _What signal is she trying to send? _Miley thought, baffled. She went over the memory of their romantic experience in her head again, causing the blazing butterflies in her stomach to dart around even faster. Lilly had seemed pretty shocked and openly dumbfounded. So what could her indifference mean? No signal at all?

_No signal at all… _A new possibility suddenly arose in Miley's mind. One she hadn't yet considered. _Maybe I'm overreacting about all of this. It was just a few kisses, not even on the lips. _It seemed impossible from her point of view judging by the passion that had driven her into doing it. _Maybe Lilly took it as innocent. I guess the action itself was kinda innocent… even if my intentions weren't…_

Miley looked over at Lilly. She was slouched back with a pillow on her lap.

_The picture of innocence, _Miley thought. Just looking at her made Miley want to kiss her again. _Is that innocent? _She was so close; it would only take a simple motion.

"Miley?" Lilly asked.

Miley almost leaped into the air. She wasn't expecting Lilly to say anything directly to her with the movie on. To Miley, it felt like Lilly was the movie. Her thoughts shattered in mid air and fell silent. But she was glad they did.

"Yeah Lilly?" she asked, the butterflies going crazy.

"Um…" Lilly began. She stared down at her pillow and ran her fingers over it. "You remember how, earlier today, you… kissed me?"

Miley was finally getting what she wanted: An opportunity to confess. But even as her emotions stirred up to a fevered pitch, she felt her vocal chords freeze up.

Lilly was looking straight at her now. Her expression was clouded by uneasiness, but full of compassion.

Miley stared in her eyes, entranced. She swore she could see tiny shreds of Lilly's soul through the clear, sapphire pools. But still, she couldn't read the signal her compassion radiated.

_Compassion… about her similar feelings for me? Or toward her pity on me when she rejects me and leaves? _Questions just kept buzzing through her mind, layering and blending amongst one another.

"Uh…" Miley said, trying to focus on thawing her vocal chords and making her mouth form words. "Yeah. I do."

Lilly opened her mouth, not saying anything immediately.

Her gaze felt solid to Miley, who, for the hundredth time, couldn't quit staring. But the love overflowing in her expression softened it. Even with the present tension, it was irresistible to Miley.

"I…" Lilly began. Her gaze never wavered, even though she was blushing already.

_Blushing, _Miley thought. _Now if that's not a signal, I don't know what is. _Her heart fluttered. _Then again, it could just be an embarrassed response to bringing the whole thing up. _That was the logical Miley talking. She really didn't like that Miley right now. She quickly realized that she preferred signal over response right now.

"I just…" Lilly struggled to continue. "Just wanted to know… what you meant by it."

_In other words, was it a signal of some sort, _Miley thought. She really liked that word. _Um, yeah. It's a signal. Huge signal. I'm totally in love with you. That's what it meant! _That whole thought came so close to barreling out of her mouth. She almost wished it had; the suspense was driving her mad.

"Yeah… I" Miley said, her voice a bit raspy from her brittle vocal chords. "guess I just wanted to."

Lilly's gaze was beginning to waver. "Wanted to?"

_Aww, shit! _Miley thought angrily. _What a stupid thing to say! Nice going… _

"What I meant to say was… that I…" She trailed off and looked at Lilly closely. They were so close. And Lilly wasn't even moving away. _That's a good signal._

But Lilly looked so nervous. Her cheeks kept growing pinker and pinker. She seemed afraid to speak, but she didn't move away; if anything, she inched closer.

"I'm sorry, Lilly", Miley said. "This isn't coming out right." She tried to organize her thoughts, but every time she'd get them stacked up, they'd just come tumbling down. She had to ad lib. "Something happened a few days ago that really… changed a lot of things."

"What happened?" Lilly asked quietly.

Miley sighed, not knowing what to say. She glanced over at the TV screen, pausing to make another attempt to plan her words. As she did, she saw Lilly's eyes shift to the closing scene. The two main characters were together, old and gray, dying on a hospital bed in each other's arms. Then it was over and the credits began crawling up the screen.

"Lilly", Miley said. "I want you to know…" She looked up, surprised to see a tear running down Lilly's cheek. "Lilly? Are you okay?"

Lilly nodded quickly. "Yeah. Just… the movie… and…" She took a shaky breath.

"Aww, honey", Miley said lovingly. She ran her finger over Lilly's cheeks, wiping away her tears.

_Guess I'm not the only one prone to floods of emotion, _Miley thought.

Lilly cuddled up to her and rested her head on her shoulder.

Miley felt a jolt of pleasure when Lilly's soft hair brushed against her neck. She wrapped her arms around Lilly, hoping that she wouldn't pass out from an emotional overdose and ruin the moment. Her pounding heart sure made that exaggeration seem likely.

Lilly's soft, delicious scent soon followed, enveloping her. She breathed it in deeply. It felt like she was inhaling some indulgent drug; a drug she now knew she'd always be addicted to.

Miley loved the feeling of their bodies together. She felt the feminine curve of Lilly's hips and back, her flat, pleasing stomach, and her soft, gorgeous breasts. Miley thought she was going to implode from the singeing passion that overtook her.

She could hide it no longer.

As if answering Miley's frenzied impulse, Lilly raised her head. She was so close, their noses were touching.

Miley locked her arms behind Lilly's neck brushing her lips against Lilly's. She kissed her slowly at first, still trying to hold back, not wanting to scare Lilly.

But to Miley's surprise, Lilly kissed right back. A wave of ecstasy rocked her from head to toe. She kissed back hard, trying to push her tongue into Lilly's mouth. Lilly obliged the moment Miley began pushing it through. She slid hers in as well.

Miley moaned as she truly tasted Lilly for the first time. She beckoned Lilly's tongue with her own, begging it to continue caressing her whole mouth.

When the passionate kiss ended, they both fell back, dazed.

"Wow", was all they could say.


	15. Chapter 15: Anything For You

**A/N: Hi everyone. Sorry this update is so late… high school can really take a toll on you. There's been a lot going on in my family lately too, so my attention has been divided to say the least. Things are calming down so the delay for this update will hopefully be a one-time thing! Enjoy! I have a feeling you'll like this one...**

Chapter 15: Anything For You

In that moment, every worry, doubt, and anxiety that had been eating away at Miley's sanity melted right out of her. It all seemed so trivial now that it was paying off. Lilly's longing smile just reinforced that.

Miley's heart had shot into her head, completely unplugging her logic. And this time, she didn't even try to reach for it as it floated out of sight. "Lilly…" she said seductively. "That was… so…" She couldn't find the right word to finish.

Lilly wasn't faring any better. "Miley… you're so…"

Neither of them even took the time to finish.

Miley came down on Lilly, swiftly yet softly, pushing her onto her back. Lilly welcomed the gentle domination.

Miley pressed her lips on Lilly's again, kissing her hard. She kept going, moving her lips in sensual synchronization with Lilly's. Their tongues quickly found one another.

Miley caressed every inch of Lilly's mouth and indulged in her new favorite taste. As they kissed, Miley passionately grinded her body against Lilly's.

Lilly responded fervently, raising her body up against Miley's. Her longing was almost visible as it heatedly rolled off her body.

Miley ran her lips down the side of Lilly's neck, planting kisses wherever she explored. She could feel Lilly trembling beneath her, and this time she didn't have to analyze the signal to know that it was out of pleasure. Lilly's gasping moans (which turned Miley on so much) gave that away. Miley ran her lips across Lilly's collar bone. She felt Lilly's hands beneath her shirt. A moan escaped her lips as Lilly's fingers stroked her bare back. In return, Miley kissed down Lilly's exposed chest and caressed the tops of her breasts.

Lilly sighed and moaned, her lips curled into a pleased smile.

"Did I ever tell you how gorgeous you are?" Miley said, her voice husky velvet.

Lilly sighed, high and soft. "Did I ever tell you how sexy you are?"

Miley grinned down at her, poking the end of her tongue through her teeth, a classic Miley expression. "Wow. Round one of talkin' dirty: Lilly 1; Miley 0. And I was so sure I'd beat you to the punch in that category!"

Lilly shrugged, giving her an adorable, toothy grin.

Miley squeezed Lilly with her legs, bearing a lustful smirk. "I don't think I've ever heard Lilly Truscott say such a naughty thing."

"Well if I haven't before, then I'll say it now", Lilly said. The glow in her eyes turned from a comical azure sparkle to a passionate sapphire flame. "Miley, you're so sexy."

Miley kissed her lips silently. "Well, that makes _two _of us." She ran her lips up Lilly's neck, pausing at her ear. She growled softly and nuzzled her head against Lilly's silky blonde tresses.

"Eeeep!" Lilly squeaked. "I'm so scared!" The comical tone was back.

"I swear you get cuter by the second", Miley whispered in Lilly's ear.

Lilly trembled, a delicate giggle on her lips.

Miley grinned. "Will you do something for me Lilly?"

"Anything", Lilly replied airily.

Miley put her lips back to Lilly's ear. "I wanna hear that bedroom voice."

"Um… I'll try… as long as you don't laugh or anything."

Miley snickered. "Honey, I'll probably do something, but it won't be laughing."

"Okay…" Lilly said. She took a long breath. Then, as sexily as she could, she said, "Miley, you're so damn hot. Take your clothes off."

"Whoa…" Miley whispered. "That was the most seductive bedroom voice I've ever heard." She wasn't lying. Her heart pumped up into unsafe levels all over again and the heat spilling through her body intensified.

"That last part was just a suggestion", Lilly added quickly. "Not a command or anything."

Miley grinned mischievously. "Wanna hear my suggestion?"

Lilly nodded eagerly.

Miley straddled her waist again, putting her lips to Lilly's ear. She loved Lilly's involuntary tremble whenever she drew her breath against her ear. "Lilly", she whispered. "Let's make love."

Lilly was silent for a moment. She looked into Miley's eyes, obviously trying to read them. She was silent, but her expression couldn't hide her excitement.

Miley pulled off her shirt with one swift motion and then proceeded to take off her pants.

Lilly's eyes widened at the sight of Miley in her sexiest underwear. Her breathing hastened.

"You don't have to accept my suggestion, baby", Miley said lovingly.

Lilly hesitated for a moment, the excitement never leaving her features. And then, she threw off her shirt so fast that Miley almost missed it by blinking. She revealed a beautiful green bra that held her soft, round breasts so perfectly.

"I do accept it", Lilly said tenderly. "I'm just a little… nervous."

Miley gave her a loving, concerned look. She caressed her cheek. "Don't worry at all. I know anything with you is going to be wonderful", she said gently. "But I don't want to pressure you into anything. If you're uncomfortable, we don't have…"

"No, no", Lilly said quickly. "I really want to, Miley. This is just… new to me. I don't know if I'll be any good…"

Miley kissed her, unable to resist. "You have nothing to worry about. I promise you. And hey, judging by what we've been doing, I can tell you'd be great. Hell, you can lay there comatose and you'd still be fireworks."

Lilly smiled. "I love you so much."

"I love you too", Miley half-whispered. "Come with me."

They got up. Taking Lilly's hand, Miley led her up the stairs and into her bedroom. After dimming the lights, Miley slid into her bed and gathered Lilly into her arms.

After another long kiss, Miley asked, "Are you ready?"

Lilly nodded slowly. "I am."

"Okay", Miley said. She gently reached down and removed Lilly's pants. "Just relax, baby."

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley found herself drifting in and out of sleep over the next few hours. Ecstasy still pumped through her and teased her brain as she stepped in and out of the thresholds of her dreams and consciousness. Every time she woke up, she felt momentarily disappointed for having her dreams interrupted, but the euphoria returned the moment she saw Lilly. She lay close to Miley, her bare skin made pallid by the strip of moonlight streaming through the window. Miley wrapped her arms around Lilly, who cuddled up to her even when submerged in deep slumber. Miley couldn't get enough of her warm, naked skin.

Around 1:30 am, they both awakened together.

"Lilly?" Miley asked, her voice cracking from sleep.

"Hm?" Lilly half sang, half whispered.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Wonderful", Lilly said, cuddling closer to Miley. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Miley stroked her hair. "Well, uh, I mean, what we just did. It's pretty huge and… I didn't scare you did I?" A small flicker of guilt was sneaking among her euphoric emotions. She had gone all out on Lilly, and the way Lilly screamed had concerned her.

"Scare me?" Lilly gave her a crooked look. "No. You didn't _scare _me." Her voice bore a smile. "Miley, I loved every minute of it."

Miley traced her finger over Lilly's chest. "Me too. I was just a little concerned… you screamed so much. And I… guess I felt bad for not letting up a little. It… pretty much turned me on even more."

Lilly laughed. "Miley, you're so funny! Sorry if it concerned you. I guess I did scream a lot!"

Miley gave her a playful look. "Ya think!?"

Lilly nodded, biting her lip as she grinned.

Miley sighed, a soft smile on her lips. She kissed Lilly lightly. "I never would have thought things would turn out this way until…" She let the thought remain unfinished.

After a moment of silence, Miley asked, "Lilly? You tired?"

"Mmm, not really", Lilly replied, her original Lilly-ish tone of voice practically lighting up the whole room.

Miley glanced at the silvery moonlight spilling across the bed. "Wanna take a walk?"

"A walk? Sure", Lilly said happily. "As long as you hold my hand." She looked at Miley with pleading eyes.

Miley felt her heart melt all over again. It was all she could do to keep from saying "aww". She wove her fingers between Lilly's beneath the covers. "Of course. Anything for you."


	16. Chapter 16: Perfect

Chapter 16: Perfect

Absolute night was upon them when they stepped out the back door and onto the beach. The moon shone brightly and the stars emulated its pale glow, lancing holes in the heavy blanket of darkness. Waves softly beat upon the deserted coastline, as if tired from a long day. The peaks and troughs of the lazy undulations caught pockets of the astral light, only to throw them away and come tumbling down on the shore.

Miley kept her fingers intertwined with Lilly's as they walked toward the water's edge.

"The ocean's so different at night", Lilly said as they faced the sea.

Miley stared out at the dark waters. "Yeah. I bet it's even more beautiful at night, but we just don't have the eyes to see it."

Lilly smiled. "That sounds about right." Her voice was deep, almost pensive. "Did you ever just… wanna float away out there forever? Past all the waves and out to where it's calm and quiet?"

"I… never really thought of that", Miley said. She caressed the back of Lilly's hand with her thumb. "I'd really like to float out there forever with you right about now… Nothing to worry about. No one to bother us. Just you and me." She could see Lilly beaming in the darkness.

Lilly wrapped her arms around Miley's waist and laid her head on her shoulder. "That would be perfect."

Miley pulled Lilly even closer, running her fingers through her long hair.

"This is the best movie night ever", Lilly half whispered.

Miley gave a soft laugh. "I'm just so glad it turned out this way. I was so nervous."

"You were nervous?" Lilly remarked. "You seemed so… confident." She giggled.

Miley looked at her, eyebrows raised. "What are you implying?"

"Oh, nothing", Lilly said playfully.

"Well, you weren't too shy either, if I remember correctly."

Lilly sighed cutely. "Just a little observation."

"Well, thanks for your feedback", Miley said. "Here's mine." She pulled Lilly into a long, tight kiss.

When it was over, Miley smiled, the tip of her tongue poking through her teeth in her trademark "Miley" grin.

"Wow", Lilly said. "I should give myself a pat on the back. That was some amazing feedback."

Miley smirked. "You should, and I'm not kidding."

They kept walking along, the lazy waves licking at their feet.

"As crazy as it may sound", Miley said. "I was so nervous before you came, I thought my stomach would reach capacity and butterflies would fly out of my mouth. I knew I had to tell you how I felt tonight, and I was so scared that you'd run away in screaming terror or disgust or something like that."

"Really?" Lilly said.

"Really. I just couldn't bear the thought that I'd lose you as a friend." Her voice darkened. "I already thought I lost you once…"

Lilly was silent for a moment. "What do you mean?"

Miley tried to suppress the oncoming pain of her memories. Her dream was replaying, slowing down and repeating the scene of the viewing over and over again. "It's just… that dream. The one I told you about. The one where you died." Saying that still pained her deep inside, like a bruise that refused to disappear.

"Oh, the dream", Lilly said. "It really affected you, didn't it?"

Miley nodded. "Yeah. What really bothers me is that it just keeps coming up in my mind, replaying almost, when I least want it to. I can't get rid of it."

Lilly gave Miley's hand a soft squeeze, sympathy in her adoring eyes. "I wish I could make it disappear… maybe you'll dream about us, out at sea for an eternity and a half, next time you sleep. It can take your old dream's place."

"That would be perfect", Miley said. "Send that sweet dream my way."

"I will", Lilly said happily.

The waves seemed to quiet down as they walked along, as if trying to listen in on their conversation.

"So, what are we going to do, Lilly?" Miley asked. "I mean, are we gonna tell people?"

Lilly was silent, obviously thinking. "Hmm… well I… guess we should be open about us." She smiled. "Why hide the truth?"

"Yeah… but what if…" Miley trailed off.

"Well, we don't have to tell anyone yet", Lilly said. "We'll get to that. This is all about _us_ though. Not about them. I don't care what they say."

Miley kissed her again, unable to resist. "I should've fallen in love with you sooner. What have I been thinking all this time?"

A mild grin played across Lilly's face as she looked down at the sand. "I know what I was thinking…"

"What do you mean by that?" Miley asked, kicking the water as it lapped against her feet.

"You never noticed before?"

"Noticed? Noticed what?"

"Miley", Lilly said. "To be honest, I've kind of had a crush on you for a while now." She giggled. "Actually, not kind of. I've _really _had a crush on you for a while now."

"A crush on me?" Miley asked gleefully.

"Yep. Huge crush", Lilly said, beaming, her eyes a bit distant. "I've just been scared to admit it. I was worried that you'd be freaked out and never want to see me again if I confessed. Sort of like how you felt before I came. My feelings brought along a lot of uncertainty in my own mind and everything… I just didn't know what to do about it. So every time you hugged me, I just froze up, begging myself not to do something I'd regret. But… none of it seems to matter now." She looked at Miley lovingly. "We're together now, right?"

"I couldn't bear it any other way", Miley said, pulling Lilly close and sealing the embrace with a kiss. She'd be happy to stay there, kissing Lilly all night on the moonlit beach.

"I can't say I've been kissed by many people, but you, by far, are the best kisser ever", Lilly said simply. "And I doubt that record will ever be broken."

"Mmm, thanks", Miley said sensually, caressing Lilly's cheek.

"Eeeep…" Lilly squeaked softly as Miley kissed down her neck.

"I love it when you do that", Miley moaned into her ear.

Lilly drew in a tiny gasp, smiling. "One night and you're already an expert on how to turn me on."

Miley laughed and threw her arms around Lilly. "Like I said before, what was I thinking all these years?"

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Time flew by so fast that neither of them would have guessed that it was now past one in the morning. They sat on the firm sand, just out that water's reach, never letting go of one another.

"How about sleeping over tonight?" Miley suggested after she and Lilly yawned at the same time.

"Love to", Lilly said. She looked in the direction of her house. They were actually closer to it than they were to Miley's. "I really should let my mom know. She'll flip if she wakes up and I'm gone."

"Yeah, good thinking", Miley said.

Lilly cocked her head, seeming to gauge the distance to her house. "I'll just run over and leave her a note. I know she'll be asleep."

"You sure?" Miley said. "You could just call her."

"It's okay. If I sneak in the door, there's a better chance she won't wake up and yell at me."

"Well, okay", Miley said. She looked back at her own house. "My daddy's probably home by now. I'll go tell him. Or make sure he's asleep, either one."

Lilly grinned. "Sounds like a plan!"

They stood up.

"Meet you at your house", Lilly said, preparing to take off.

"Wait!" Miley said.

Lilly relaxed, looking back. "What is it?"

Miley gazed at her adoringly. "Hurry back. I'll miss you…" She stuck out her lower lip and looked down.

Lilly giggled and stole one more kiss before jogging off.

Miley sped off toward her house, a huge smile glued on her face.

When she got home, she saw her dad's wallet and keys on the table. A few lights were on and the door to the back deck was cracked open. She heard her dad's voice, low and tired, outside. An unidentifiable coldness washed over Miley in that moment.

Right when she got to the door, he turned to come inside.

"Whoa!" Robbie Ray said. "You surprised me, bud! What are you still doin' up?" The phone was in his hand.

"Who were you talking to this late?" Miley asked, a shred of anxiety overshadowing her tone. "That wasn't Aunt Pearl, was it?"

"Pearl? Heck, no", he said, putting down the phone. "She and your Uncle Earl are no doubt snoring by now."

"Oh", Miley said. Her sudden worry disappeared, but the underlying nervousness was still there, gnawing at her core.

"It was Marty Klein. He had some big ideas he wanted to tell me about. Too big, I think." He chuckled and shook his head. "He's all the way out in Europe and forgot about the time difference."

"That's Marty for you…" Miley said. "Anyway, can Lilly sleep over?"

"Uh, sure. Fine with me. Where've you been, anyway?"

"We were just takin' a walk and we lost track of time", Miley said quickly. "Lilly went to let her mom know."

"Well, okay", he said. "You really shouldn't be out at this hour, though."

"I know… sorry."

"When Lilly gets back, I want you both in till morning, okay?" he said.

"Sure, daddy."

"I'm gonna go hit the sack." He kissed her head. "Night, Mile."

"Night, daddy."

He trundled up the stairs.

Miley peered out the window, scanning the beach for Lilly. All the sudden, she caught sight of her cell phone laying on the piano, untouched for days. She nonchalantly grabbed it, turned it on, and checked what she'd missed. There were a few missed calls and texts listed on her phone. She went to the oldest voice message first; an unknown number.

She was caught off guard when she heard Dakota Fanning's voice. It was a quick message (she seemed to be in a hurry), sent days ago. In it, Dakota asked her if Miley, or Hannah rather, wanted to come to her friend's surprise party that day. She finished by asking her to call as soon as she could.

_That was the morning I went to the beach with Lilly, _Miley thought. _When she showed me her medal and my dad wasn't here._

Miley opened the back door and stepped onto the deck. In that moment, something flickered in the back of her mind.

_Dakota's party… _The memory came almost immediately. _I _did _go to that party. I know it. Just like my dad's trip, my concert_, _that club… all in my dream. _Her mind fumbled through the specific, connected events, one after the other. For once, she was glad she didn't throw away the memory of that dream. Each detail was still fresh in her head, playing in her mind's eye as clear as crystal.

The message proved that yet another event from her dream had come true. _The only reason I didn't actually go to the party was because I ignored the phone call from Dakota Sunday morning, _she thought. _Simple enough. _

But it just didn't add up. Her thoughts just reminded her of the mystery she'd been trying to forget about for days. The more she thought about it, the word "dream" just didn't seem fitting.

She painstakingly thought back through the whole thing, picking out what didn't happen from the "dream". _Let's see… _she thought anxiously. _I went out clubbing with Traci, not that whole entourage from my dream, and I never went to Hawaii like I did in my dream. And… Lilly's okay._

Her reasoning just made her feel like she was going around in circles. But even so, it restlessly flailed through her mind as if trying to unravel its secrets. For a moment, she decided to think about it with a different approach: She'd truly experience everything and was living through it all over again.

_Impossible, _she thought dubiously. She shoved her cell phone in her pocket, not wanting to check everything else. _Clubbing, Hawaii, Lilly… Clubbing, Hawaii, Lilly…_

It felt like a sick, cosmic riddle to her.

She felt her phone bulging in her pocket, and thought back to the club on Southshore Boulevard. Then, something clicked into place. She knew she'd been to the club twice, once with a large group of friends, once with Traci and her posse.

_Things have been happening twice, _she thought. _But when I went to the club, both times were with different people and on different days. Totally different. Monday with Traci after the concert, Sunday with the others after…_

And that's when she knew.

"I never went to Dakota's party because I never answered my phone Sunday morning", Miley said out loud, the gears in her head beginning to turn. "I never went out clubbing with all those people because I never met up with them at Dakota's party." Her heart was slamming like a bass drum. "I never went to Hawaii because I never met Brad and Angelina at the club and convinced them to come to the concert…" That left one thing.

A chill shot down her spine, not just from the cool gust of wind that swept the coast. She rubbed her arms in attempt to warm them, but she paused when her right hand came in contact with a little scar on her left arm. It was very small, just two insignificant parallel marks, but the sight of them blew her mind. She remembered when she'd done it to herself, the drop of crimson blood standing out in the morbid memory of that day, laying in Lilly's bed, mourning her death.

Lilly's death. The only thing that didn't happen over again. The only thing yet to have taken place.

It happened three days before she came back from Hawaii: Thursday.

"It's Thursday morning…" Miley whispered. "Today's Thursday…"

Perfect terror swathed her as she stood on the deck. She was frozen to the spot so tightly; she thought her bones might shatter from the pressure. The mystery that had been tugging at her mind for days faded into the background. Though she'd yet to find an answer to how it all happened, she knew all of it was real, and now, it was repeating itself.

That's all that mattered now. The pieces of the puzzle finally fit together, just in time for them to be destroyed.

A scream tore through the silence.


	17. Chapter 17: Bang

Chapter 17: Bang

This was it. Her second chance; her final chance.

"No…" The word tumbled out of Miley's mouth in a hushed shriek. Sheer, utter panic took over her screaming heart. It felt like her organs were suddenly filled with dry ice. Her blood boiled in her veins, even as gelid flames of adrenaline shot through it. The unquenchable flames rushed through her blood and ignited her muscles. Unbelievable power singed through the fibers of her being.

She swung her body toward the stairs of the deck, her wide eyes resting upon a small hammer that sat nearby from a project her dad had been working on. It seemed to wink at her in the pale moonlight, just waiting there for her to get it.

Bang.

A gunshot echoed down the deserted beach. A scream of terror followed, clawing through Miley's ears. The gunshot spiked up her adrenaline even more, but the terrified cry tore her apart. It was like a dagger stabbing into her heart; shards of glass being embedded in her brain. It was forcefully muffled seconds later.

Miley didn't hesitate. She was already sprinting down the stairs and up the coastline, the hammer clutched in her clammy hand. Within seconds, she could see silhouettes by aid of the moonlight. In absolute horror, she knew exactly what was going on.

Her heart was beating so fast, she thought it might implode, but the power in her muscles seemed endless and formidable.

When she was near enough, she could see it all. A bulky man– at least six foot five– was pinning Lilly to the ground. She struggled beneath his large frame, fighting for her life. He held her arms and legs down, crushing them into the sand. When she screamed in agony he grabbed her neck and chocked her with his bare hands.

Hatred seethed through Miley. She wanted to kill him.

She bared her teeth in contempt. Raising the hammer behind her, she summoned all the power in her arm and leaped forward.

The man turned to her. His dark, messy hair glistened with sweat and his shirt was wet with blood. Lilly's blood. Miley roared and swung the hammer at the assailant. It smashed into the right side of his nose with a sickening crack.

He yelped and recoiled, holding his mangled nose.

Miley looked at Lilly in horror. She was writhing on the sand, trying to get up. There was blood drenching her shirt and a ghastly gunshot wound marring her side. She was harshly roughed up and obviously beaten. Her clothes were ripped and torn all over.

Miley's immobilizing terror came at the wrong time.

It all happened in a matter of moments, initiated by one sound.

Bang.

Miley cried out as she felt a sharp stinging in her upper back and a shattering pain that followed. She doubled over in anguish, the hammer slipping out of her hand. She heard Lilly shriek what sounded like "no!" She gritted her teeth, trembling on her knees. Through her tears she could see the man standing up.

Click-click. He pointed his readied gun straight between Miley's eyes with a sadistic sneer on his scarred face. This was it. It was all over.

But in a split second, Lilly was on her feet. Again, he was taken off guard, only having enough time to turn to Lilly before she kicked him between his legs. He howled and lowered the gun and Lilly punched his mangled nose, going straight for the gun. But he recovered in time to hold onto his weapon.

Miley swallowed her pain and grabbed the hammer, getting up as fast as she could.

But it wasn't fast enough.

The man kneed Lilly right where he had shot her. With a pained shriek, she drew back, and he utilized his chance.

Bang.

Lilly had tried to get down, but she'd been hit. From where Miley was, it looked like the bullet came right through her chest. Lilly fell to the ground.

Frantic fear stabbed through ever inch of Miley. A single teardrop rolled down her cheek. And when she saw the evil man smirk lightly at what he had done, all of her hatred materialized into pure power. She raised the hammer up and brought forth all of her hatred-driven power with a vicious scream, smashing it into the back of his head. She could feel it crack into his skull, and then, nothing. He fell to the ground with a mighty thud and stayed there, unmoving.

Miley looked down upon him. He was out cold.

She ran to Lilly's side, getting down on her knees. Tears poured down her face. "LILLY! Can you hear me?"

Lilly's breathing was sharp and shallow. Her eyes fluttered open weakly. She nodded so faintly that Miley almost missed it. There was blood everywhere. The bullet Miley had feared fatal had hit closer to Lilly's shoulder than her heart; she still had a chance.

"Don't worry, Lilly", Miley said frantically. "He's out. You're gonna be fine." Her voice was so shaky and delicate that it felt like it would shatter if she overused it. She took off her jacket, tenderly wrapping the sleeves around Lilly's shoulder and pressing the rest of it to her blood-soaked side.

"Oh God… oh God, oh God…" Miley stammered as she struggled to put pressure on Lilly's wounds, her own blood feeling like ice on her back. "HELP!" Miley screamed hoarsely. "SOMEBODY HELP!" The quiet lapping of the waves on the sand were so loud all the sudden. They seemed to carry her cries out into the depths of the sea. She screamed in pained frustration.

Lilly looked up at her. "M… Miley…" she whispered faintly.

"What is it, baby?" Miley whispered hysterically.

Lilly's eyes gleamed with fresh tears. "… love you…"

Miley gently touched her face, bloodying her moist cheek. "Oh, Lilly… I love you too. Never forget that." She leaned down and kissed her through the mess of blood and tears.

Lilly trembled. She was fading.

Miley looked up at Lilly's house and up toward the street. She gripped Lilly's cold hand, knowing that she probably couldn't get help fast enough if she were to leave Lilly there, bleeding. Lilly could barely even move her arms enough to get pressure on her wounds. "We gotta get up there, Lilly. Can you move at all?"

Lilly pinched her eyes shut and nodded. She struggled to sit up, hopeless without help.

Miley pulled Lilly's arm over her shoulder and supported her back. "We can do this. We're so close, I know we can make it."

Lilly slowly staggered to her feet, moaning in agony.

"C'mon, baby. You're doing great", Miley reassured.

She supported Lilly as they took their first steps, all the while keeping pressure on her wounds. She was eerily aware of the blood pulsing from her own uncovered wound. But she just wasn't concerned about it now. They were making progress, even when they practically had to crawl. To Miley, hearing Lilly's heartbreaking cries and sharp, uneven breaths was so much more painful then the bullet embedded inside her.

When they passed Lilly's door, Miley banged on it as hard as she could, all the while screaming for help. Lilly was on her knees now, beginning to go limp in Miley's straining, bloodied arms.

"Lilly!" Miley said, her voice failing her. "Stay strong… please…" Her vision was failing her too as her brain whirled and swam through her skull. She was losing too much blood. They both were.

Miley drew on the dwindling supply of her blind adrenaline to pull Lilly away from the locked door of the house and out toward the road. She prayed that someone would see them.

"HEEEEEEELP!" she screamed. "SOMEBODY! HEEEEEEEEEEEEELP!"

Lilly made a tiny, pained sound as she fought to keep breathing. She collapsed, slipping from Miley's weakened grip, onto the cold ground. She was on the verge of death.

Miley looked down at her. Her bloody body was distorted through Miley's tears.

"HEEEEEEEEP!" Miley croaked. She fell at Lilly's side, still trying to keep Lilly's wounds covered while her own wound was killing her.

Click. A door opened close by.

Bang. A car door slammed really close by.

Bang. Another.

Bang. And another.

Lights were coming on. Houselights and headlights.

A woman screamed.

A man swore.

The last thing Miley saw were the shadows of people crowding around her and Lilly, surprise and terror evident in their voices.


	18. Chapter 18: Pieces

Chapter 18: Pieces

For a while, there was nothing.

Just blackness, born from Miley's shattered consciousness. The scattered remains of what was left inside Miley's head floated about in the limitless cosmos of her subconscious world. But after a while, something compelled the last few shreds of her somnolent existence to start picking up the pieces— her thought process, her memories, her consciousness— and build them back up into a solid physiological existence. It wasn't a quick or easy job; there was so much to recover.

Nevertheless, piece by piece, the basics began to return. First, there was the visual sense of light. A bright light amidst the pitch black, straight ahead. As soon as that registered, little fragments of fear began to settle with her. It seemed like death in the clichéd "light at the end of the tunnel" sort of sense.

_Death. _The word almost seemed to echo around her, but not in a chilling way. Almost in a comforting way. Miley couldn't quite wrap her head around it. _Am I dead? _She thought. She had never given much thought to her own death. Just like everyone else, she had known her time would come someday. But right now, as she passed through the needle's eye, she just couldn't fathom it. It was just like her dream, no, not her dream, _the past_, when Lilly died. She just couldn't fathom it. Even with Lilly laying dead before her very eyes, she just couldn't accept it. And now, here she was.

_This can't be it, _she thought. It wasn't that she was shocked or scared; she just knew this wasn't it. It didn't feel like death. It felt like a dream. Her emotions, her thoughts, were dwelling on her own survival and even more so the survival of the one she loved.

She knew she was still alive; she could sense it. Her own spirit revealed it.

There were sounds all around her now, voices mostly. Every one of the voices was familiar— her dad, Jackson, Oliver, so many family members and friends. But the one that Miley picked out and held onto was Lilly's.

The sound of love's voice was so pleasing, so canorous as it ameliorated Miley's worries. She tried to speak, to call out to Lilly and get her attention, but she just couldn't find her own voice.

Almost as soon as Lilly's voice had reached Miley, it was silenced. All of the voices were silenced by one terrifying sound.

Bang.

Miley wanted to scream in horror when the ghastly sound tore through the voices— tore through Lilly's voice— like tissue paper. But the sound of her terror died before it reached her lips.

There were more lights now, bright and unnatural, shining toward her from all sides. New voices came, not one of them familiar. They crescendoed into a frantic rumble as the lights grew brighter. Soon, the voices were as loud as a mob, roaring from behind the blinding lights.

Miley tried to close her eyes and cover her ears, but they were gone, along with her hands. All of her was gone. She was an impossible collection of senses and thoughts that were growing more and more sensitive as they slipped from existence.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

Miley's eyes snapped open. She screamed, sitting up.

Something began beeping at a shrill, irritating pitch.

A sharp pain in Miley's back caused her to recoil, and she lay back down. She felt like she'd been hit by a tuck.

It took a minute for her eyes to adjust to the light. She weakly rubbed them. Something stung on her left arm when she bended her elbow. Looking down, she saw an IV needle embedded in her arm. Blinking a few times, she looked around.

She was lying on a firm hospital bed beneath a long, fluorescent light on the grey paneled ceiling. The room was small, with a little television in the corner, a couple chairs, and a bare hospital tray wheeled up to the side of her bed.

The shrill beeping continued to ring through the room. Miley carefully turned toward the source of the noise: the machine connected to her IV.

A stout nurse came through the door. She smiled at the sight of Miley's alertness. "Oh, Miley, you're awake!" she said happily. "Are you feeling alright, dear?"

"Uh", Miley said. Her throat was raw. "Yeah, I feel okay. How long have I been here?"

The nurse briskly crossed the little room and pressed a button on the machine, silencing the beeping. "At least eleven or twelve hours." She gave Miley an amiable smile, but there was an underlying sorrow in her expression. "You've been doing great this whole time, hon."

"W… what about Lilly? Where's Lilly!?" Miley's heart was already thrumming like crazy.

The nurse didn't answer right away. "She's all right. We're doing all that we can for her, and she's been reacting positively to all of our treatments."

Miley eased up a little, but she was nowhere near relaxed. "When can I see her?"

The nurse looked down at her as she might look at a whimpering puppy. "Soon, dear. We still need to take care of you two, run some tests and so on. And right now you both need some more rest."

Miley looked down at her arms in her lap. They both bore multiple hospital bracelets.

"Your dad told me you two are best friends", the nurse said.

Miley nodded, the beginning of a soft smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "Yeah… the closest best friends come."

The nurse removed the tube connected to the bag of clear liquid hanging on the rack that held the IV machine. She replaced it with a bag of greenish liquid and attached Miley's IV tube to it. She then reset the machine. "You're both very strong girls", the nurse said. "It's easy to see that."

"Thanks", Miley said, her voice still weak and raspy.

The amiable nurse smiled again. "You're welcome, Miley. Is there anything you need?"

Miley shook her head. "I'm fine, thanks."

"Okay", the nurse replied. "If you think of anything, just call. You're dad should be back soon. I think he just went to get a snack."

Miley smiled. "Thank you."

"My pleasure, dear." With that, the nurse departed.

Miley sighed, looking up at the bag feeding her IV. She absently stared at the green liquid dripping down into a little chamber and being sucked through into the tubing. Her memories were beginning to float back in, certain pieces more clear than others. The darkest images came first, burning through her aching head and tracing through her tired, adrenaline-singed veins. All of the blood, the screaming, the struggle. Her own gunshot wound only throbbed momentarily at the memory. What caused her the most pain was the memory of Lilly: her blood everywhere, her terrified screams, her pained moans, the light leaving her eyes…

Tears of pain and worry quickly collected in her stinging eyes. She sobbed, staring out the window into the late afternoon sky, craving to see Lilly.

Miley suddenly heard excited footsteps coming up the hallway through her opened door. She wiped her tears away and watched the door. Happiness began to penetrate her pain as Robbie Ray came through the door.

"Miley!" he practically yelled. He almost dropped his Fudgy Buddy when he saw her. "You're finally awake!" He gently gave her a hug and tenderly kissed her forehead.

"Oh, daddy! I'm so happy to see you!" Miley said, the tears retuning. She embraced him with all the strength her weakened body could muster.

After a tearful reunion, Robbie Ray pulled up a chair to Miley's bedside. "How are you feeling, bud?"

"Okay", Miley said. "Sore, weak. But nothing too bad."

"Good. They sure are takin' good care of you."

"I'm glad", Miley said. Her voice was starting to return to normal.

"Yeah, I was worried for a while. You were out for a good ten hours, maybe more."

"That's what the nurse said", Miley replied.

"If you wanna sleep some more, you go right ahead, Mile", her dad said. "I'll be right here."

"Thanks, dad", Miley said. Just as they usually did, her thoughts came right back to Lilly. "Have you seen Lilly at all?"

"Well, I was up past her room a few minutes ago and her mom was with sitting with her", he said. "I didn't want to intrude, so I just peeked in the window." He paused. "Lilly's still resting, by the looks of it."

"But she's okay, right?" Miley asked.

"Yes, she's okay. Heather's a wreck, though."

Miley took a nervous breath.

"Miley", he said. "I just know she's gonna be fine. There's no doubt in my mind." He touched her cheek softly. "What you did was amazing, Mile. I'm so proud of you."

Miley looked up at him, the pieces of a shattered smile rejoining on her lips. "She saved my life too, you know."

"Is that so?" he said softly.

Miley nodded weakly. "There was a moment… he pointed the gun right between my eyes. And Lilly… she attacked him, even though he had already shot her. He retaliated and… I wasn't fast enough. He shot her again."

Robbie Ray looked at her closely, a tear in his eye. He gently put his arm around her and kissed her. "You're heroes. Both of you."


	19. Chapter 19: Whisper

Chapter 19: Whisper

(The next day)

"Hold on now, Mile", Robbie Ray said. "You shouldn't walk so fast."

"I'm fine, daddy."

He sped up to keep pace with her, carefully wheeling the medical pole between them. "I don't want this thing tugging at you. Having a still needle in you is bad enough."

"Dad, the needle's fine. I barely feel it anymore", Miley reassured him.

"You will if you get too far ahead of the pole", he said.

"What, you can keep up with that little pole holding you back?" Miley teased, a smile spreading across her face. "Geez, daddy. Maybe you need to get back to your jogging."

He gave her a soft grin. "I'm glad you're up to it, Miley, but the nurse said you could 'get up and try to walk a little'. Not 'get up and try to run a little.'"

Miley slowed down. "I know… I just need to see Lilly. Right now."

"I can't guarantee they'll let you in", he said. "You know that, right Mile?"

Miley nodded. "Yeah, I know."

Her heart was quickening. _They just have to let me see her,_ she thought. She almost felt her heart thrusting forward, unable to resist the magnetic pull of Lilly waiting in one of the rooms. And with that, she unconsciously sped up.

"Miley, please slow down a little", her dad said for at least the forth time.

She sighed and did as he said. She scowled and narrowed her eyes at the IV bag hanging from the pole. The stupid thing had annoyed her from the start. She just couldn't seem to look at it in any other way than a hindrance that kept her from Lilly.

She wrapped her hand around the pole. Its cold smoothness felt strangely eerie on her skin.

They remained quiet as they turned a corner in the hallway into another wing of the hospital. They moment they entered this wing, Miley noticed and uncomfortable silence. The only sound all around them was the shrill squeak of a loose wheel on Miley's pole.

"Lilly's in that one", Robbie half whispered.

Miley followed his glance to a room near the middle of the hallway, beside the nurses' station. She nodded, feeling her heart tremble a little. They slowly wandered down the silent hallway. Miley looked all around her as she progressed. Every door was open but there seemed to be no signs of life beyond them. The squeaky wheel sounded like a blaring alarm in the prevailing silence. It seemed to Miley that any sound louder than this would shatter the whole wing like a hammer would glass.

After walking what seemed like a mile, they were standing outside Lilly's door. The only closed door in the entire wing.

Miley felt her heart plunge downward at this simple fact. She was about to protest, but Robbie Ray had read her mind.

"Excuse me, miss", he said to a nurse sitting at the station. "Could we possibly visit the young lady in this room? We're friends of hers."

"Oh", the nurse said. "The doctor and her mother are with her at the moment. And visiting hours are almost over. I would suggest trying again tomorrow since I doubt there will any time for you to visit today." The nurse gave them a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry."

"Oh, well that's all right", Robbie said. "We'll then, we'll just check back tomor—"

"Um, I'll be here overnight", Miley injected. "Could I see her after visiting hours?"

"I'm sorry", the nurse said. "I don't think that's possible."

"But why not?" Miley was getting frustrated.

"If I'd let you, I'd be breaking a rule, and I can't do that", the nurse said, sounding as if she was addressing a confused child. "I'm sorry, dear."

Miley appreciated all of the nurses' benevolence, but the sweet way they were addressing her was starting to cloy and just flat out annoy her.

She nodded and turned away, staring through the window on the door with a longing gaze. She could only see the doctor's back from her angle. He was sitting on a chair near Lilly's bed, talking to someone nearby—Miley assumed it was Heather Truscott—with a few nods and hand motions and he spoke. She craned her neck as far as she could, but there was no way she'd be able to see Lilly's mom, let alone Lilly, from out there.

"C'mon, bud. We'll see her first thing tomorrow", her dad said, putting a strong arm around her with utmost care.

_That's not good enough… _Miley thought. For a minute there, she wanted to break down and cry until the nurse finally let her have her way. But she knew she couldn't act like a baby.

In those moments, as they took the long walk back toward Miley's room, Miley felt like more of an adult than she ever had before. From the moment she had picked up that hammer and sprinted down that beach something new had been planted in her. And now it was beginning to take shape.

Out of nowhere she just knew: Life would never be quite the same for her ever again.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

It was almost midnight when Miley gave up trying to go to sleep. She had slept almost all of yesterday—and when she was awake, she would lie completely still, praying—so her alertness was plausible. In the hours past, she had tried to force herself to fall asleep, but anxiety would end up sneaking up on her every time. Her heart refused to remain content long enough for her to doze off.

For a while she stared up at the little chamber that her IV bag fed, counting the drops of the clear liquid as they collected into a pool at the bottom.

_29, 30, 31, 32…_

She closed her eyes.

_Lilly, Lilly, Lilly…_

Her eyes flew open; she couldn't bear it anymore. _Lilly could be dying and I'm just laying here! _Her stomach started doing somersaults at the thought. She felt like she was blowing Lilly off all over again. It didn't matter that she wasn't allowed to see Lilly, she would make sure that she'd see her right away. It was just like sneaking out when she was grounded to meet Lilly somewhere. She'd done it countless times.

_It's the same thing, right? _She thought. Her answer to her own question was a bit delayed, but she ignored her logic. She would take every little chance she could to see Lilly.

Miley threw off her covers and stood up, careful not to bump her bandaged wound. She quietly opened the door and stepped into the hall, wheeling the medical pole along with her. As she walked down the quiet hallway, she looked straight ahead, never slowing down. There were a few people here and there, but otherwise, the hallway was pretty empty. She made it to Lilly's wing without being questioned.

When she entered the wing, the silence penetrated her more than she had expected. The lights seemed a bit dimmer there, and this time all of the doors were closed. All of the sudden, Miley felt like she was in a horror movie and some ghost would spring out of hiding and get her. The thought kind of amused her at first, but she instinctively gazed behind her every few steps out of worry. Her spirits lifted a little when Lilly's door came into sight.

_Oh please let the nurses be gone, oh please let the nurses be gone… _Miley thought, gritting her teeth. She could see the strip of the hallway beside the nurses' station bathed in a sickly light. Ever so carefully she approached the station, making sure the one squeaky wheel on her pole was silent. She couldn't hear any signs of life: no rustling of papers, no clicking of keyboard keys. _So far, so good, _Miley thought. When she had made it to the wall that hid her from anyone in the station, she silently peered around the corner. No one was there.

_Yes! _Miley thought happily. She relaxed a little, approaching Lilly's door. After a quick glace down either side of the hallway, Miley opened the door and snuck in. She then wheeled the pole in and quietly shut the door behind her. With silent footsteps, she entered the room. Her eyes went straight to Lilly.

Lilly lay silently on the bed, her eyes closed. She was in worse condition than Miley, judging by the machines and tubes that surrounded her. She had cuts on her face and hands, and monstrous bruises on her neck and down her arms.

Miley's heart started pounding on overdrive as love and concern overflowed her being. She quietly approached Lilly's bed and sat on a chair, pushing it as close to Lilly as she could get. She had planned to wake Lilly up the moment she saw her, but she now realized how selfish that would be. Instead she sat there and stared at her, tears in her eyes. Despite Lilly's condition, Miley was mesmerized by her beauty. And even more so of the beauty that abounded in the warm color of her cheeks and the slow rise and fall of her chest.

Miley saw that there were multiple bouquets of brightly colored flowers on the table beside Lilly's bed, accompanied by balloons and get well cards. But among the get well cards was a little note sitting on top that looked like it didn't belong. With a closer look, Miley saw that it had her own name on it. She reached over and grabbed it. When her back throbbed in protest at the stretch, she clenched her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut. She looked down at the little folded note in her hands. Her name was written in capital letters.

Lilly made a tiny, delicate sound and moved ever so slightly. Miley smiled, her heart fluttering. _She must be dreaming, _Miley thought.

She stared at the note for a moment more, and then decided to open it. There were three simple words written in Lilly's handwriting on the inside:

_I Love You._

In that moment, she could have sworn that Lilly whispered "Miley" in her sleep.


	20. Chapter 20: Careful Confessions

**A/N: Hi everyone. Sorry my update's so late. The reason? Let's just say the world's gone crazy. I've had to reevaluate a few thing going on for me right now, and we'll leave it at that. Anyway, thanks for sticking with me! Enjoy.**

Chapter 20: Careful Confessions

The tears snuck up on her and seized her quickly.

Miley fought to hold in her hysterical sobs. Her lips were curled into a gleeful smile even as she tasted the uncontrollable tears. She clutched the love note in her hand, her knuckles a ghostly white. _What's wrong with you, Miley? _She thought, her shoulders heaving.

She looked down at Lilly, practically feeling the life she radiated. It finally hit her in its full extent: she had done it. They had done it. They had saved each other.

The whole experience had given Miley a new vision. A truth she had saved from eternal obscurity. All this time, she was trying to save Lilly's life, and in a way, her own life. Her life _with_ Lilly. Everything had been going downhill for her in these past months. Everything was changing and Miley had lost all sense of stability. She had been slowly losing Lilly day by day. Her paper-thin promises proved this point more than anything. But Lilly had still tried to keep them together. She had selflessly forgiven Miley every time she'd gone back on her word. And it took Lilly's _death _to open Miley's eyes and reveal to her what should have been all along.

_I don't deserve her…_ Miley whispered through her tears. In those moments, she hated herself. She had hurt Lilly more than she had helped her in the time before she died. She just couldn't forgive herself for this.

"Miley…"

Miley wiped her tears away and looked at Lilly.

Lilly made a slight movement. Her eyes slowly flickered open.

Miley felt a burst of relief shoot through her aching body. "Lilly? I'm here, baby. I'm here!"

Lilly's clear blue yes came to rest on Miley, and they were immediately filled with rapture. Her lips trembled into a smile and tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. "Oh… Miley!"

"Thank God… oh God", Miley said. She got up as fast as she could and knelt down as close to Lilly as she could get. "Lilly…" Her voice was shaking almost as much as her hands. "Oh Lilly, praise God you're okay… oh, God… I love you."

"I… love you too", Lilly said weakly. "So much… I'm so happy you're… okay. I was so scared, Miley. So scared for you…"

Miley felt her heart melting within her chest. "Everything's all right now, Lilly." She was chocking up. "We're… we're okay."

Miley carefully leaned down to her and kissed her trembling lips. She could feel the pure truth of life as Lilly's lips pressed up against hers. Her lips were so soft and inviting. Both of them were silent, for their kisses and smiles communicated everything that needed to be said. Miley ran her fingers through Lilly's hair as their tears coalesced. They stared into each other's eyes, their noses pressed together.

Lilly carefully moved over to the side of her bed, motioning Miley to climb in beside her.

"Are you sure? I don't want to bump you or anything", Miley said.

Lilly nodded. "I'm sure. Just so you'll be alright."

Miley grinned. "What, this thing?" She pointed at the pole. "Don't worry, I barely even notice it anymore." She slowly got into Lilly's bed, carefully keeping her arm straight. It was a little bit awkward for her, but the moment she was staring into Lilly's eyes again, everything was perfect.

They lay together in silent bliss, their physical pains fading into the background. They held one another, gently and lovingly.

Even as they ascended to cloud nine, Miley couldn't shake the emotional burden in the back of her head. "Lilly?"

"Yeah, Miley?"

"I've been meaning to tell you that I'm sorry."

"You're sorry? About what?" Lilly said, her signature, bubbly tone shining through.

"Well…" Miley said. "For breaking us down, I guess. Things have just been… insane the past few months. There've just been so many wasted days and broken promises between us, all of which I brought on." She looked down at the bed sheets. "I haven't told you this before, but I've let things get out of hand. Mostly the Hannah type stuff, but everything else, too. And… I know in light of what happened, it might not seem like a big deal anymore, but I believe I owe you a huge apology. So, Lilly, I am so sorry for all the ways I have wronged you and taken advantage of your forgiveness. Will you forgive me? Just one more time?"

Lilly's mouth hung open for a minute. "Miley…" She looked at Miley with a perfect expression of love. "Of course I forgive you. But you really don't need to feel bad about it. Your life is more stressful than anyone else's I know. There's a lot of pressure in that."

"I know", Miley said. "But that doesn't mean I have a right to ignore the most important aspects of my life." She ran her fingers across Lilly's cheek. "I love you, Lilly. You've opened my eyes to who I really am and what I've been missing."

Lilly cuddled up close to her. She was crying.

Any other time, Miley would've said something like, "Aww, Lilly, it's okay, don't' cry", but she had no grounds to say it. She was crying, too.

"Miley", Lilly said quietly. "That's absolutely beautiful… I… I don't deserve that."

Miley looked at her closely. "If there's anyone who doesn't deserve something, it's me. I don't deserve you."

Lilly stared up at her, shaking her head. "You've done so much for me, Miley. I wasn't doing so good these past few months, either. I've just been so depressed and afraid of my own feelings. Afraid that you'd never know… like I said before, I've had a huge crush on you for a while now, and I just kept trying to bury those feelings. It was tearing me up. And then you admitted to what I was too scared to admit and everything was perfect… my heart finally began beating full time and I could breathe again."

Miley caressed the back of Lilly's neck, causing her to tremble and grin.

"I had… no idea", Miley said.

She softly and sweetly kissed Lilly again.

After a silent moment, Lilly said, "Miley?"

"Hm?" Miley said.

"What happened to…"She struggled to say it. "That guy."

"Oh. I think I… killed him." Miley felt a sudden coldness settle into her.

Lilly nodded slowly. She looked as though she'd say something, but remained silent.

Miley took her hand. "Don't think about him right now."

Lilly nodded quickly this time. "You're right. I won't."

"Are you gonna be okay?"

Miley could tell Lilly knew the meaning of that question. A shadow of pain crept about her eyes. But she still nodded. "I will be."

"No matter what, Lilly, I'll be near you. We'll get though anything that might come up." Miley held her close, softly pulling her into another kiss.

And that said it all.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

"Hey, Mile", a soft, low voice whispered.

Miley breathed deeply and opened her eyes to the morning's light. She was still cuddled up close to Lilly, who was fast asleep. She looked up and saw her dad standing by the bed.

"Daddy…"

"What are you doing in here, bud?"

Miley sat up slowly. "I wanted to see Lilly."

"You're not supposed to do that", Robbie said.

"What are they gonna do? Kick me out?"

He laughed. "No, no, they aren't gonna do that. You're lucky one of the nicer nurses saw you in here. She said you two were just too cute to disturb."

Miley smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah", he said. "So I had to be the big meanie and wake you up." He smiled down at Lilly. "How 'bout we come back when Lilly's awake."

Miley didn't realize she was still holding Lilly's hand. She looked at her lovingly. "Dad… I want to tell you something."

"What might that be?"

She stroked Lilly's hair ever so softly. "I'm…" She breathed deeply. "I'm in love with Lilly. And she's in love with me." Telling him was a lot easier than she thought it would be.

She didn't look at him right away. He was silent as he sat down in a chair near the bed.

"We're together, dad", she confessed.

There was a moment of silent uncertainty. Miley turned to him, trying to read his expression.

"I can't really say I'm surprised", he said. "I been noticing some new things between you two, ever since I saw you together in the dressing room."

Miley nodded. "Are you alright with this?"

Robbie thought for a brief moment, and then nodded. "If it's what's in your heart, Mile, I won't dare object." He smiled at her.

She sighed and smiled back. She gave him a big hug, saying, "Thank you" over and over again.

"You're welcome, bud" he said, returning her embrace. "I'll support you no matter what."

Miley glanced back at Lilly for a long moment before they left the room.

She smiled the whole time as they walked back to her room, suddenly thinking of how much she loved shooting stars.

**A/N: Hope you all liked this chapter! I'm about 90% sure that my next will be my last for this fanfic, but the ending is still rolling around in my head. Though I'm pretty sure of what I'm going to do, I'd love to hear your thoughts.**


	21. Chapter 21: Promise

**A/N: Well everybody, this is the last chapter. Forgive me for uploading it so late. Things have been crazy around here since the Christmas season started. In case you don't want to read my little "endpage" I'm going to post here in a moment, I want to thank you so much for staying with my story to the end and bearing with my sometimes inconsistent updates! All of your reviews have been absolutely wonderful and I appreciate them so very much! Please review this chapter and if you want, tell me what you thought of my debut fanfic as a whole. You don't know how much your comments mean to me! Once again, thank you, thank you, thank you! I love you all! Hope you enjoy the conclusion of How To Save Her Life! **

Chapter 21: Promise

(One week later: Around 4:00 pm)

_Neither of us will ever forget it, that's for sure, _Miley wrote.

She pensively tapped her pen against the paper for a moment. _Our… injuries are fading. But I'm not quite healed. Neither is Lilly… _She lovingly dotted the "i" in Lilly's name with a heart. _I really have a hard time imagining what she went through, even though I was there through most of it._ Her hand tightened around the pen as the memory attempted to seize her thoughts. She stared down at her words, trying to keep her attention on making more.

_Tomorrow's the day Lilly comes home! _She wrote in big, bubbly letters. Her brighter tone took over her saddening flashback. She read over the simple sentence three times, her smile widening as she scanned each word. _It's gonna be hard for me to be gentle with her! _She added with a toothy grin. _But hey, whatever it takes to have her back. I can't wait to move past all this and just _be with _her. To show her how much I love her…_ She broke off, placing Lilly's name in big heart right in the middle of the page.

_Never thought I'd be one to keep a diary, _Miley thought as she absently shaded the bottom sides of the heart, giving them a sketchy depth. Before she had got out of the hospital almost a week ago, Miley would have never taken the time to keep a diary, but now, she felt like she needed it. Already, she had almost filled an entire notebook.

Miley flipped through the pages, going over their subjects in her head. A lot of her entries had been about the unbelievable experience initiated by her wish. Some had just been pure emotion, good and bad, that lingered from all that had happened. But by far, her diary was full of entries about Lilly. She found that she could go on for pages about just one of Lilly's qualities.

With a relaxed sigh, Miley shoved her pen into the spiral binding of the notebook and lay down. She stared up at the ceiling and shut her eyes. _One more day, _Miley thought, her heart beating excitedly. She had already begged her dad to let her drive to the hospital after school, but he was rehearsing for a collaboration show next week for almost the rest of the night. If it were up to her, she'd visit Lilly until the nurses threw her out. It had almost come to that yesterday.

"Hey Mile, I'm on my way out, okay?" Robbie called up the stairs.

"Okay", Miley called out.

"Your dinner's in the fridge. Call if you…"

The doorbell suddenly rang.

"Who could that be?" her dad said faintly.

Miley heard the front door open. She couldn't make out what the guest was saying. All she heard was her dad saying something along the lines of, "be so happy". The hushed exchange piqued her curiosity. She set her diary on the nightstand and got up.

"See ya later, bud", her dad called up to her. She heard him open the door again. "Oh and by the way, you have a visitor."

_Visitor,_ Miley stepped out of her room, closing the door behind her. _Good. Maybe that'll pass the time._

The door closed and Robbie was gone. In a dreamlike state, she proceeded down the hallway, pausing to check her appearance in the hallway mirror. She then headed straight toward the stairs.

It wasn't until she was down three stairs did she look forward and stop in her tracks. Standing in front of the piano bench and staring straight up at her was Lilly. A huge smile lit up her face at the sight of Miley and quickly turned into a gaze of true love.

Miley felt a flood of warmth ignite her heart and spread to the farthest reaches of her body. She felt her mouth turn in the most loving smile possible. Her brain was once more behind her emotion.

The two of them stared at each other with expressions of absolute love on their faces.

"Lilly!" Miley exclaimed. "You're here!"

Lilly nodded cutely.

Before Lilly could say anything in response, Miley flew down the stairs and kissed her, passionately but with loving gentleness.

Lilly giggled happily and kissed back.

Every time they kissed, Miley found it harder and harder to pull away. She indulged in every second, completely addicted.

They paused, staring into each other's clear blue eyes and rubbing their noses together.

"They let me out early!" Lilly said happily. "Guess I was doing better than they thought."

Miley gently ran her hand through Lilly's silky hair. "I should've expected this, knowing how strong you are."

Lilly kissed Miley so longingly. "God, I've missed this", Lilly said softly. She nestled up close to Miley.

Miley could feel Lilly's warm breath on her chest. She sighed deeply and rested her head in Lilly's sweet-smelling hair. The perfect scent was so familiar and she inhaled as much of it as she could.

"I love you, Lilly", Miley said, not knowing what else she could say that would sum up her feelings.

"I love you too, Miley. So much…"

In those moments, nothing stood in their way. No confliction, no pressures, no interruptions. And, to Miley's great relief, no impending danger.

They were truly together, truly in love.

HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM HM

(A few days later)

"Yeah, it's a little hard to remember the details", Lilly said. She was staring down at the sand, clutching it between her toes. "Probably just because I want to forget." All the sudden, tears began gathering around her eyes.

Miley squeezed her hand, looking at her plaintively. She gave her a small, sorrowful smile. "It'll fade, Lilly. I'll chase it away if I have to."

Lilly grinned, taking Miley's other hand. "You have some gift, Miley."

"A gift? What do you mean?"

Lilly wove her fingers between Miley's. "It really takes someone special to make a person smile while they're crying."

"Aww, thanks, but it isn't so hard", Miley said, wiping Lilly's tears. "Especially when you're in love."

Lilly smiled. "See? There you go again!"

"Well, forgive me for being a miracle worker", Miley said.

They started walking, hand-in-hand.

"So what's up for tonight?" Lilly said.

"Oh…" Miley said, remembering. "Hannah stuff. Charity thing in the city."

"Oh, well that's great", Lilly said sincerely. "Busy after that?"

"Super busy. Totally booked", Miley said.

Lilly nodded, looking down.

Miley caught her gaze, grinning slyly. "I'm inviting my girlfriend over for a very romantic movie night. We're gonna cry our eyes out watching _The Notebook_."

Lilly looked at her with playful disbelief, her mouth agape.

Miley laughed at her, laying her head on Lilly's shoulder.

"Well", Lilly said. "I'm sure she'll love that."

"Yep, I hope so. I promised her we'd go through at least three boxes of tissues."

"Oh, I bet she could go through a lot more than that", Lilly said wistfully.

Miley kissed Lilly's cheek softly. "I also promised her I'd love her forever."

Lilly looked at her adoringly. "You did, huh?"

"I did", Miley said. She moved in close, her lips barely an inch from Lilly's. "I do. I promise, Lilly."

Lilly eyes shone with unyielding emotion. "I know I can count on that."

They kissed as the warm breeze embraced them.

They were healing.


	22. EndPage

**A/N: Hi everybody! I really wanted a good, quick way to sort of sum up this story. I tried to put some heart into this story, some meaning, you know, and I want to share where some of it came from and the meanings I was going for. So if you're bored, check it out! Again, I can't thank you all enough for just sitting down and reading my fanfic. I really hope you felt it was time well spent and got your fill of liley-ness from it, hee hee! The reviews have been so gracious and I've appreciated every single one so much. Thank you so much! **

**How To Save Her Life**

A Hannah Montana fanfic

Romance/drama

Pairing: Liley

Based on a concept for the Hannah Montana episode: When You Wish You Were A Star

**Other works included:**

William Shakespeare's_ A Midsummer Night's Dream_

_The Notebook _(movie)

**Morals/themes:**

Never take the ones you love for granted. Anything can happen at anytime to take them away from you.

A truly traumatic occurrence can change a person's feelings, mindset, and outlook on life.

Second chances are few and far between. Set things right the first time and be grateful for and never ignore the second chances you do get.

Take time to realize what's important in life and don't let less important things take the place of the most important things.

Follow your heart and be honest with yourself and others.

Never ignore what could be true love.

Fate has a mysterious way of working miracles. Never forget that.

**Helps and Inspirations that I utilized:**

Miley's grief in chapters three through seven were loosely based off the first six of "the seven stages of grief".

The comment from Lilly in chapter sixteen about floating away in the ocean forever was based on a personal experience. (It was the first thing I thought of when I saw the moonlit ocean over the summer)

The scene in chapter twenty-one when Miley and Lilly stare at each other with "expressions of pure love" was directly inspired by a dream my sister had about a week ago.


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